January 15, 10:56 AM
Wonder Bar
Back Alley

Phoenix heaved a sigh of relief as a fresh, winter breeze cut through the stale air that had permeated the scene shop. The stuffy building only exacerbated Phoenix's growing unease, which had felt much like a chain slowly suffocating his heart. Stepping outside allowed him to take a break from reality, if only for a moment.

The alley, now basking in a morning glow, revealed itself in full. The two attorneys, who had yet to step foot behind the Wonder Bar, took in the lengthy sight of the stretched out alleyway and were surprised to find it in its current state.

"Sure looks clean and tidy for a dingy back alley, huh…?" Athena quipped to herself.

At first glance, the alley had been mostly swept free and clear of all underlying debris (assumedly because of Felix, Phoenix surmised). The blue-suited attorney glanced toward the street-side alley exit and concluded that, as far as he could tell, the alley had been cleared of all trash - apart from loose gravel, anyway.

"Oh, I can explain that," exclaimed a voice coming from a woman hunched over, examining something on the floor. The woman stood and turned to face the two attorneys, revealing herself to be Ema Skye.

"A-Ah, Detective Skye!" Athena hopped up, unable to muffle her surprise. "Um, weren't you just...out front?"

The detective casually shrugged as she closed the distance between the two of them. "Call me Ema. Any friend of Mr. Wright's is a friend of mine. And between you and me…" She glanced up and down the alleyway, bringing her voice to a hushed whisper as she ensured that their solitude was secure. "...watching the blue suits work is about as painful as watching paint dry. I needed to get away for a while and do some investigating of my own," she ended with a wink.

Phoenix met the detective with a worn-out smile. "I guess we both need a bit of a breather, then." His index finger rose to scratch his chin. "But, getting back to the alley...why is it so clean?"

"Oh, yeah!" Ema remarked. She immediately took out her electronic device and began swiping through the copious amounts of notes she had taken throughout her investigation.

"I thought it was strange too, right? Especially when you take into consideration how the other end of the building looks…" She paused, letting the attorneys recall the marquee's grimy exterior. "So I did some digging. As it turns out, the businesses around here wrote up an agreement of sorts years back to collectively make sure that the back alley stays clean. Seeing as there are around five or so buildings connected through here, there's quite a lot of foot traffic. It's my guess that this agreement is supposed to hold each other accountable in case garbage piles up back here."

Ema pocketed her device and reached into an additional coat pocket, digging for something. After pulling out a sheet of paper, she foisted it onto Phoenix. "Here, I had Ms. León track down a copy of the agreement. I figured you might want to take a look at it."

Phoenix flipped the sheet of paper around and held it close as Athena peered over his shoulder. They began reading the short document that comprised the businesses' mutual agreement.

Contract Agreement

Between
The Businesses of Main Street

This agreement is hereby entered and agreed upon by all five signing parties, representing each individual property on Main Street thereof.

The aforementioned parties hereby agree to the following:

1. Each property must ensure the mutual cleanliness of the joint alleyway connected by each Main Street business.

2. To maintain cleanliness in an efficient manner, each property will be responsible for upkeep and maintenance of the portion of the alleyway directly connected to their respective business.

3. Representatives of each property will NOT be held responsible for the upkeep of any portion of the alleyway not connected to their respective business.

4. For added convenience, each business will be allowed one trash receptacle (provided by the city of Los Angeles) with which they may use to dispose of garbage.

5. Representatives of each property are hereby not permitted to infringe on or dispose of materials in any receptacle not assigned to his or her respective business.

6. The city of Los Angeles will, in accordance with city-wide policy, dispose of all garbage in the aforementioned receptacles every Friday morning.

7. Failure to uphold this agreement will result in disciplinary action in accordance with the laws of the state of California.

Phoenix followed the text with his pointer finger as he read it, attempting to piece this document into the larger puzzle that comprised last night's horrific incident. One such portion stood out to the both of them, but it was Athena that vocalized it first.

"So each business along this strip basically has their own dumpster?" With a jerk of her head, she began looking around the alleyway to confirm her suspicions. As if counting on her hand, she continued, "...three, four, five. Yep, checks out."

"And per the agreement, no other business can go near any of the other dumpsters, because they're all in charge of cleaning out their own space." Ema nodded along in thought.

Athena placed her hands on her hips, her thoughts formulating in her head. "Well, that explains why it's so clean…" After momentarily pausing, she jolted back up, eyes aglow in surprise, "Oh, Boss!"

Her sudden bolt upwards caused the other attorney to flinch. "Y-Yeah? What is it?"

She paced along a section of the alleyway, connecting the dots that had aligned in her mind. "Think about it…! A dumpster is just BEGGING to be used for all your evidence disposal needs, isn't it?! There could be a vital piece we're missing in here!"

Phoenix's eyes lit up. "Oh, great thinking, Athena! I'm...somewhat skeptical that anyone involved would just leave any evidence behind like that but- Athena?!"

Before Phoenix could finish his train of thought, Athena dashed over to the dumpster that sat up against the far wall across from the back door of the Wonder Bar. With her ungloved hand, she tore open the side door to the dumpster ferociously...and then nearly fell over as she got a whiff of the incoming smell that invaded her nose.

"C-C'mon, Athena...get it together!" She said, feebly attempting to psych herself up by lightly smacking herself in the face.

"H-Hey, Athena...we're lawyers, not hobos. Why don't we leave it to the seasoned detective to investigate?"

With a loud ka-tonk, Phoenix found his face meeting a chocolate Snackoo for the first time.

(...I guess that's a no, then?)

Athena steadied herself and stared at her boss with a gleam of determination in her eyes. "Just think, Boss! Nobody's been able to find a second bullet, but what if it's just been right under our noses the entire time?!"

Phoenix found himself torn between his skepticism and the naive hope that there might be something of importance hiding within what was thrown out the day before.

(...Athena, I really don't think the kille- ...the culprit would do something so senseless.)

However, the sight of his subordinate desperately clinging onto any shred of hope reminded Phoenix...of himself.

(...I didn't become an attorney to give up on those that need me. The only way the truth will reveal itself is by examining every single piece of evidence as closely as we can. ...C'mon, Phoenix, what kind of example are you setting here?)

"Do it, Athena," he commanded.

After a nod, she poked her head into the dumpster's dark interior, plugging her nose with her free hand as she hurriedly looked around. "I can't see anything here! Ugh, seriously?! Sticking my head in a frickin' dumpster for nothing…" she moaned, her voice nasal in tone.

"Be sure to take a good, long look. Just don't...inhale any of the fumes," Phoenix suggested, barely stifling a snicker.

Athena's voice echoed from inside. "Har har, very funny, Boss! Hey, why don't you come over here...and…" She trailed off as her head stopped moving. "What the…?"

"D-Did you find something?" Phoenix asked, hope rising in his voice.

Athena poked her head out from inside of the dumpster, an uncertain expression on her face. "I-I, well...yeah, but...Why don't you take a look for yourself?"

She backed away from the dumpster and gestured with her gloved hand toward its side door. Phoenix, after giving Athena an unsettled glance, tentatively placed his hand onto the door and peered inside.

After a brief search of the dumpster's empty interior, his eyes fell on the object Athena had presumably identified. It rested in the corner closest to Phoenix, below his head. He could see why Athena might have missed it at first glance.

(Is that...some kind of cloth?)

Wanting to get a better look at the object, Phoenix gingerly hoisted the object out of the dumpster with both of his hands and held it to the light.

His face froze.

In his hands was a light red cape.

(This...B-But how?)

A dim light from the outer reaches of Phoenix's recollection seemed to flicker on, returning him to a period within his life which he very much hoped to put behind him. He sank into the darkness that composed his thoughts, deep in remembrance.

Within that dark space stood one singular pillar of light. And there, smiling, was a young, brown haired magician cloaked in red attire.

(T-Trucy...you haven't worn something like this in...so long. God, where has the time gone…?)

As Phoenix cradled the familiar red cape, the scenery surrounded him blurred, and his eyes misted. For just one singular moment in time, he was back with his daughter.

"B-Boss…?" Athena whispered, not wanting to invade what had become a deeply private scene. Ema too looked on with concern.

Slowly, Phoenix came back to his senses. With one hand, he wiped an emerging tear from his eye. "S-Sorry...I just...I'm fine. This just brought back some old memories."

(Trucy's old cape is stored away back home. It can't be hers...it can't.)

Not entirely convinced by Phoenix's assurance, Ema hesitated to report her observation, but continued nevertheless. "Hey, that's a good find." She studiously examined the fabric, taking in the material. "Kinda reminds me of what Apollo was wearing last night...but of course, it couldn't be his. He still had it on when we took him in."

Ema lowered her rose colored glasses onto her face and closely probed the cloth, attempting to determine its scientific properties. "Scientifically speaking, it would be impossible to get any fingerprints off of this. They just wouldn't stick. But still, this might come in handy for your case. ...Somehow."

Athena nodded with a fierce look in her eyes. "We'll take any scrap of evidence we can find and put it to use! Now we just need to find out who it belongs to!"

Phoenix scratched his chin, searching his mind for possible suspects.

(If it's not Apollo's...whose else could it be?)

His eyes widened as he fell upon an answer. "I'm not positive, but...if we're on the subject of magic capes, I think I know someone that might be able to help."

Athena gasped as she realized who he was referring to. "Oh, the stagehand! He used to be a magician too, right? He might know who this belongs to!"

Phoenix nodded. "Ema, have the police taken him in for questioning?"

Ema tapped her chin in thought. "No, we conducted his questioning here, so he should still be around...Same with the owner too, actually. Feel free to ask them your own questions, naturally."

Phoenix and Athena exchanged a dubious glance, with Athena voicing their shared observation. "So not even witness testimony is off the table for our investigation, huh?"

Ema shook her head, equally uncertain as to the methods of this phantom prosecutor. "Orders are orders, and I've been told to allow you to question any witness you come across." She folded her arms and smirked. "Maybe the prosecutor got wind that I'd help you out regardless and decided to-"

Ema's voice cut itself off as suddenly as her train of thought. Phoenix could picture Ema racking her brain, a recollection of something just on the tip of her tongue. After a brief pause, Ema shouted, "Oh, shoot! I completely forgot! The prosecutor reported back not too long ago!"

Athena quirked her eyebrow. "They did? Well, what did they say? And more importantly, who the heck are they?!"

"Well, when I say reported, I mean reported to Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth. They had some news regarding the trial tomorrow," Ema remarked, her expression hardening as she recalled the news that the prosecutor had sent. "You're gonna want to brace yourselves."

Phoenix's eyebrows furrowed, his mouth frowning at what he now knew would be bad news. "Might as well rip the bandaid off. We're knee deep in quicksand as it is."

Ema nodded solemnly, and she bit her lip as she ran through several possible ways to articulate what she wanted to say. "The brass reported to me that the prosecutor…" She sighed. "...they intend to treat this case as an attempted murder, Mr. Wright."

"Attempted murder?! Y-You mean...not an accident?! But why?!" Athena exclaimed as she doubled over in shock.

Phoenix wanted nothing more than to lash out in anger, but he could detect the origin of a headache forming and (despite it taking considerable willpower) prevented himself from worsening it any further.

Through gritted teeth, Phoenix spat out, "Why would they do that? Any prosecutor worth their salt would be aware of Apollo's history with Trucy. Pressing full charges makes no sense!"

Ema's glance wavered as she frowned. "All I can tell you is that the prosecution might angle for some kind of motive. I don't know for sure. ...I'm sorry."

A bright shade of pale swept over Athena's face. Gripping her elbow, she whispered, "T-That's horrible...I can't even picture that he'd do that on purpose…"

A familiar iron grip clenched itself around Phoenix's throat. Finding it increasingly harder to breathe, he rapidly turned away, hoping to prevent himself from causing even further alarm.

(C'mon, Phoenix...what are you doing? You're supposed to be the one to let them know that you've got everything under control!)

As he inhaled deeply in an effort to cleanse himself of any negative thoughts, Phoenix found himself traveling further into the alleyway, away from the street side.

(You're Athena's mentor, for crying out loud! If even you can't project confidence, what is she supposed to think?!)

He scoffed to himself as he exhaled.

(...You've faced longer odds and fought harder battles. Now get back over there and show them that you're not one to turn down a fight!)

Phoenix shook his head to clear it of thought as he steeled himself to face this new challenge with open arms.

As he turned to head back down the alley, however...he froze.

Phoenix's eyes met the alley's floor as it connected with the wall. Lying there, in a haphazard heap, rested a pile of wooden shavings.

(...Ordinarily, I'd never even notice something like this. But given how clean this alley is...this might be something to keep in the back of my head.)

With this in mind, he closed the distance between himself and his colleagues.

"We caught you staring pretty intently at the wall over there. Found your trump card?" Ema asked, dryly.

Phoenix smiled in response, scratching his head. "H-Hey, you never know. One man's trash is another man's decisive evidence."

As Ema rolled her eyes (but found herself smirking all the same), Athena asked with a tinge of concern wavering in her voice, "Well, Boss, do you think there's anything left for us here to investigate?"

Phoenix tapped his pointer finger to his chin, ruminating in thought. "Hard to say. I'm not sure we have the time to comb the entire alley, especially when there are witnesses to track down…"

With a flick of her sunglasses, Ema butted in, "Hey, no sweat, leave it to me! Methodical, scientific investigation? Ah, the stuff of dreams, I tell you!" She smiled widely, eager to begin. "And don't worry, if I find anything, I'll make sure to track you down and let you know."

"Actually…" Phoenix murmured. "Would you mind tracing where that wooden scrap heap came from? Call it a hunch, but it just stuck out to me as odd, given how aggressive these other businesses are at enforcing, uh...cleanliness."

(I wonder if threatening to sue would get our own office tidier...food for thought.)

Ema appeared to be positively beside herself with glee. "Oh, Mr. Wright, you know how to ask a girl all the right questions! You can count on me to get it done!"

Athena pumped her fist in the air, ready to get moving. "Wúnderbar! Now let's do some tracking of our own and get after these decisive witnesses! C'mon, Boss!"

Not waiting to see if he'd follow behind her, Athena disappeared back into the building without a second thought. Phoenix shot Ema a glance and shrugged as he nonchalantly said, "Kids these days, am I right?"

As Ema waved Phoenix off, he smiled to himself and thought about how fortunate he was to have friends that he could rely on.

Court Record
Evidence

Attorney's Badge: Apollo's cherished attorney's badge. Just putting it on makes him feel...ready.

Magatama: A gift from an old friend. Slightly translucent. It radiates softly with a mysterious light, and reacts to those that harbor secrets in their hearts.

Stage Pistol: The high-caliber weapon used to shoot Trucy. Confirmed to have been fired once. No fingerprints have been detected anywhere on the weapon.

Bullet: The bullet that pierced through Trucy's shoulder and struck the column behind her. Believed to have originated from the stage pistol, though not confirmed.

Contract Agreement: A signed agreement between all Main Street businesses to ensure that the back alley remains clean. Notes that each business may only use their assigned trash receptacle, which the city will empty every Friday morning.

Cape: A mysterious, ownerless red cape that was found inside of the dumpster across the stage door in the back alley. The only object found in the dumpster. No fingerprints can be identified.

Wood Shavings: An unidentified pile of wooden shavings found in an otherwise tidy alley. Located a short distance to the left of the stage door. Presumably the key to solving the entire case.

Profiles

Apollo Justice (23): A young lawyer who's been at the agency for almost two years. He has an amazing ability to spot lies through people's tells. Arrested for the attempted murder of Trucy Wright.

Trucy Wright (16): An aspiring young magician who Mr. Wright adopted when duty called. In critical condition after being shot during her magic show.

Phoenix Wright (34): The head of the Wright Anything Agency. He was forcibly retired once, but made his return to the legal world a few months ago.

Athena Cykes (18): The latest lawyer to join the agency. She lived in Europe for a time, where she studied psychology.

Brutus Carver (46): The bouncerjust trying to do his job. A very thorough person in general, he can seem incredibly aggressive and overwhelming.

Simone León (33): The lavish owner of the Wonder Bar. Not exactly a people person. Comes off a bit smug.

Felix Handimann (22): The timid, young stage manager/prop master of the Wonder Bar. Eager to prove his worth. Keenly focused on cleanliness due to his dust allergy.

Theodore del Cipio (55): The well-meaning, but occasionally overbearing stagehand of the Wonder Bar. Seems to have been a practicing magician in the past.

Ema Skye (27): The homicide detective in charge of initial investigations. Recently took a year-long leave of absence in Europe, but appears to have returned.