Author's Note: Hey, people! This is my first Ace Attorney fanfic, as I'm still a bit of a new author around here. Anyway, in case you didn't know, this is my version of telling Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol," Ace Attorney style! I've read through the novel, and I'm going to make a lot of correlations between the book and this story (but I can't make parallels to everything). Also, every chapter title is one of my favorite Christmas songs, and they have a certain relation to what the chapter is about (see if you can figure out how they relate to each chapter). But of course, this story will still retain its classic Ace Attorney wittiness. I hope you enjoy the story as Christmas approaches!

One more thing: before you keep reading, you have been warned that this story has Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney and Ace Attorney: Trials and Tribulations spoilers (the latter game's first case being spoiled in chapter 2).

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Ace Attorney franchise or its characters and plots; nor do I own the characters and plot of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol." I also do not own the song "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year." However, I do proudly own this fanfiction's plot.

Chapter One~ It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Date: December 24, 2016

Time: 8:30 PM

Location: Wright & Co. Law Offices

"It's the hap- happiest season of all... with those holiday greetings and gay happy meetings when friends come to call..."

A group of festive carolers sing these lines with all of their hearts as the very special holiday draws near within the dwindling hours. As they sing, a spiky-haired man hunched over in his coat briskly pushes by, almost as if he was trying to ignore the jolly atmosphere of the group.

"It's the hap- happiest season of all... there'll be parties for hosting, marshmallows for toasting, and caroling out in the snow..."

The rushed man soon approached a building with a sign near the door, inscribed with the title "Wright & Co. Law Offices." He fumbled for a key in his pocket, and when he found it, he promptly jammed it into the office door's lock.

"There'll be scary ghost stories and tales of the glories of Christmases long, long ago..."

The man opened the door and immediately let himself inside. To prevent the winter wind from making any further attacks, he slammed the door behind him, which effectively blocked out the voices of the gleeful carolers. How are they able to stand out there for so long...? The man thought to himself.

Just then, a cheery voice sounded from a few feet away. "Hiya, Nick!" greeted an enthusiastic woman dressed in purple.

"Hey, Maya," Phoenix replied.

"Guess what?" Maya teased with a mischievous look in her eye.

Phoenix sighed, bracing himself for what was going to come out of her mouth next. "What is it?"

"Remember Will Powers, our client from our last case?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"He just called and told me that he and Penny Nichols are having a Christmas dinner at his house at 9 o'clock! They invited us to come!" Maya clapped her hands together and put on her most pleading face. "Can we please go, Nick? Pretty please?"

"Well, I'm already pretty exhausted tonight, so I was hoping to check out early."

"Aww..." She bowed her head in disappointment.

"Hey, that doesn't mean I can stop you from going! But I can't promise you that they'll have burgers there, if that's why you want to go."

"Nick!" Maya' s cheeks puffed in frustration. "My diet isn't strictly limited to burgers, you know! I love noodles, too! And steak, and weenies, and-"

"Okay, I get your point. Sorry, I was just messing with you." Phoenix scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Anyway, you should get going now if you want to make it there on your bike. They're a little ways away."

"Yay! Thanks, Nick!" Maya scurried to grab her coat, then she headed for the door.

"Have fun," Phoenix said. "Go knock yourself out-" he corrected himself. Probably not a good piece of advice to give to Maya. "Not literally!"

"Sure thing!" Maya called back as she flung open the door and dashed outside. As a powerful draft blew inside the office and made Phoenix shiver, he could once again hear the carolers outside, who were finishing their song.

"It's the most wonderful time... of the year!"

If only it felt that way for me, the defense attorney thought.

Christmas is normally supposed to be a time for family, friends, and happiness, but this year, Phoenix just wasn't feeling it. He looked around in the now empty office. It seemed so lonely... mainly because a certain someone wasn't there to make it feel familiar to the rookie attorney. It was just a few months ago when his mentor Mia Fey was taken away from this world. Of course Phoenix avenged her death by tracking down her killer, but that wasn't enough to make him feel at ease in what used to be her own office. Despite succeeding in two cases without her at his side the whole time (he did have some help from her, but that's a long story), he knew that it was nowhere near enough experience to even consider himself at the same level as his former mentor. What if there's a case one day where he fails to prove his client's innocence, and that blame is burdened on him? Maybe it was simply because of the depressing feeling lonely people get around Christmas time, but whatever it was, a seed of doubt was certainly being planted in his mind.

"How am I ever going to make it...?" Phoenix questioned. "Maybe I was wrong in choosing this path." He sighed to himself as he hopelessly flopped down on the couch. When he did, he suddenly realized how worn out he actually felt. I was planning on heading home to go to sleep, but... a quick nap here can't hurt, right? He pondered. He slipped off his shoes and removed his coat to use it as a blanket. Mere seconds after laying down and finding a comfortable position, Phoenix dozed off.

*BRRRING* *BRRRING* *BRRRING*

Phoenix jolted awake to the sound of the office telephone. He was about to spring up from the couch when the phone abruptly stopped. Must be a wrong number, he thought. He checked the time on his watch. 9:00... so I've only been sleeping for about twenty minutes. He was about to lie back down when he heard a peculiar sound, almost like a whisper. He sat and waited, then it came again, more clear than before.

"... Phoenix..."

He realized with a lurch in his gut that someone was trying to call out to him. Was it an intruder? Phoenix stood up, walked to the center of the room, and tried to make his best defensive fighting stance. He held up his clenched fists and spread his feet apart. This is how people do it on TV, right? Maybe now I can prove to Maya that I'm not a wimp after I take down this guy. "Wh-who is it? Who's there?" He demanded while slightly trembling. Immediately, a strange apparition manifested out of thin air right in front of him.

"Hey, Phoenix." The voice belonged to a ghostly figure in the form of a pretty woman with long brown hair and dark eyes.

"Ack!" Phoenix yelled and stumbled back, his fighting stance now scared away. "Mia- I mean, Chief!" This wasn't the first time he saw the posthumous Mia, but it was still a shock whenever she appeared on him like that.

"I'm not Chief anymore," Mia chuckled.

"Oh, sorry, Mia," Phoenix stammered nervously. "But seriously, can you stop going *poof* on me without warning? It scares the wits out of me. Not to mention the first time you did that, I passed out in the middle of a court trial! I swear, I'm gonna get a heart attack one day!"

"Well, in that case, you can join me in the spirit world." Mia smirked. "And I did warn you that I was coming. Didn't you hear me call your name?"

"Yeah... but that's still creepy!"

"So? Do you expect me to send you a text message letting you know that I'll be arriving in ten minutes or something?"

Phoenix grumbled under his breath, acknowledging that there was no point in arguing with a lawyer who was better than him. Then he straightened himself up and continued, "Anyway, what brings you here?"

Mia rested her chin on her fist and gave her friend a look of concern. "So I've heard that you've been doubting yourself about something. Care to elaborate?"

Phoenix sighed, "I don't know, I guess the pressure is getting to me. I was thinking... maybe being an attorney wasn't really meant for me-"

"Phoenix." Mia shot him her most serious look. "I've always had faith in you when I was your mentor, and I still do see great things in you. After all, wasn't this your main goal? You can't give up now. You have so much potential."

"Are you sure? Because I'm not..." Especially since it feels so lonely and confusing without you these days.

"Of course I'm sure!" Mia replied. Then she took a moment to think. "You know what? I'm going to show you that I'm sure. Expect three other visitors tonight."

"Huh?!" Phoenix gawked. And why does this situation seem somewhat familiar? Wasn't it in a book or something? Eh, probably just my imagination. "What do you mean?"

"The first one should be arriving at about 10 o'clock. I suggest that you be ready by then." Mia winked.

"Wait-"

Before he could continue, his former mentor said, "See you around, Phoenix." And with that, she was gone.

The rookie attorney was once again alone in the office, pondering what in the world just happened. And who were these three visitors Mia was talking about? I've had enough surprises tonight, he thought as he sunk back down on the couch while rubbing his temples.

Author's Note: Alright, the first chapter is done. We'll be getting to the main stuff of the story soon! I'll be posting a new chapter every five days so I can post the final chapter on Christmas Day (hopefully... I'll try to keep up with it), so make sure to check back after those five days have passed. Don't forget to review, I love (non-aggressive) feedback! And please tell me if there's anything you'd like to suggest to help me improve, such as if I'm writing these people in character enough or how to write certain things in certain ways or whatever. See ya!

P.S. I did notice that another writer, CzarThwomp, is also writing a Christmas Carol story for Ace Attorney. Go read his story, too!