Summery:After the trial that proved Phoenix Wright's innocence for forging evidence, the former Defense Attorney is paid a surprise visit by old friends. Apollo then discovers the real reason why it took his mentor seven years for his name to be cleared, a reason that might hold the key to Phoenix's mysterious dark aura Apollo has been seeing since the first day they met.

Phoenix stretched his arms, returning back to his office. He felt a great sense of pain from what Kristoph did, but was relieved the trial was over. It felt like seven years of weight from pain, suffering and loneliness was lifted from his shoulders. He needed to congratulate Apollo for winning the trial and bringing Kristoph to justice. He wasn't sure who would be in charge of Kristoph Gavin's trial, but he suspected it wouldn't be Kavlier Gavin this time.

For the first time in a long time, Phoenix decided to clean up his office. There was a lot of junk all over the place. Trucy did do a good job decorating the place, but she wasn't very good when things were cluttered. Maya was good at that kind of thing and organizing his offices.

Maya...

No use lingering into the past. Phoenix continued cleaning up and organizing the clutter the best he could. It wasn't long before Apollo and Trucy returned back. Phoenix turned, then smiled at the two. It was good seeing those two together, happy.

"Hey, you two. Congratulations on your win, Apollo," Phoenix said, while putting up some books.

"Thanks!" Apollo grinned, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Daddy, you're cleaning up!" Trucy cried joyfully.

"Yeah, what's so strange about that?" Apollo asked.

"Daddy usually doesn't clean up, unless he's really really happy."

"O-Oh!"

"Hahaha you could say that. I'm just glad that trial's over. I didn't think that case would ever be solved," Phoenix replied honestly. He looked at Apollo. "Thanks. I don't think I would've continued my secret mission, if not for you."

"R....Really?" Apollo asked awestruck.

"Really.Same to you, Trucy."

"Heehee thanks!" Trucy replied before the trio heard a knock on the door.

"Come in!" Phoenix called out.

The door opened and Apollo looked like he was going to faint. He stuttered, "th-that's..."

"Uncle Miles! You're here! I haven't seen you in ages!" Trucy cried excitedly as the Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth stepped into the office. Though, compared to the last she saw him, his tailcoat seemed to be longer and he was wearing glasses. Of course, Phoenix was aware that his former rival was far sided, but this was the first time he or anyone had seen the man wearing glasses in public.

"Uncle...Miles?" Apollo stuttered awestruck. Since when did Trucy know the Top Prosecutor? Sure Miles Edgeworth was the legendary prosecutor and rival to Phoenix Wright during his glory days, but...

"I see you're in a lighter mood today, Nick," Edgeworth replied,showing a small smile. He once called Phoenix 'Wright' in the past,but had begun calling him by the name he once called him as children since Phoenix was disbarred.

"Yes.You saw the trial too, I'm guessing?" Phoenix asked. He then showed a small smirk. "Also, since when did you wear glasses? I notice the new coat too."

"Ill informed as usual. I have recently been promoted to Chief Prosecutor since my arrival to the states this week," Edgeworth replied, pushing his glasses up to his face. "And, as Chief Prosecutor, I'll be involved in more investigations and reviewing other court cases, so I thought I'd go for a much more professional look."

"Ah, still, I didn't know you were the type to wear glasses outside your office."

".....anyways, I was looking over the trial and invited a few of your friends as well."

"Friends?" Phoenix curiously asked, cocking his eyebrows.

"Yes. I even took the liberty to go to the Kurain Village."

"Maya, Pearls, they're here!?" Phoenix asked, his eyes widened. He had just realized that he hadn't seen Pearl in seven years.

"Isn't Maya that one assistant you had when you were a Defense Attorney?" Apollo asked.

"Really? I've never heard of them," Trucy said, tapping her chin. Now, that did sound strange to Apollo and he's been seeing a lot of strange things lately since joining the Wright Anything Agency. 

"Blame your father for that one. Also, Detective Gumshoe, Larry, Maggey and a certain prosecutor from Germany took the liberty of seeing the trial as well," Edgeworth smirked slightly as Phoenix began sweating bullets.

"You...didn't...." Phoenix replied, shaking.

"You might want to distance your student and daughter from the door," Edgeworth warned with a more serious look to him.

"Why'd you invite her!?"

"Everyone deserves to know the truth of what really transpired seven years ago. We still deserve an explanation."

"What do you mean?" Apollo asked, looking confused.

"Mr. Justice, do you want to know why this man had not been proven innocent for forging evidence seven years ago, the REAL reason?" Edgeworth asked, folding his arms. Apollo blinked. Thinking about it more, it did seem strange that his mentor took this long to prove his innocence and didn't seem to have help from his assistant, the Detective of that case or anyone that was close to him that surely would've been more than willing to help. Sure, Ema Skye was a big help, but surely she'd be considered one of the last people for Phoenix to go to, right? "After the trial, a meeting with the committee took place. Given the evidence he had at his disposal seven years ago, your mentor could have easily proven his innocence, leading to an investigation. Given his reputation, no one would have doubted him, not even the judge himself."

"R...Really!?" Apollo asked, shocked. He looked at Phoenix. "Mr. Wright, is this true?"

"A...A bit? Yeah, I guess had I not taken the blame, I suppose we wouldn't be having this trial," Phoenix replied, rubbing the back of  his neck, embarrassed.

"Wait, you mean you admitted to forging evidence, even though you didn't!?" Apollo cried out, both upset and confused. Trucy looked down in sorrow, seemingly having known this.

"Speaking of which, they're here now. Mr. Justice, Trucy, you both might want to step back several feet for this one," Edgeworth warned, stepping off to the side as Trucy pulled Apollo back. Just as she did, a whip sound was heard from outside the door.

"Is that a whip!?" Apollo almost screamed as he saw a whip flying from the door and aiming right for Phoenix.

"YAH!" Phoenix cried, cringing from the whip burns and stepping back."F-Franziska..."

"You foolish fool of a foolish ex Defense Attorney telling foolish lies for his own foolish games!" Franziska shouted angrily, readying her whip. "EXPLAIN YOURSELF, NOW!"

"Daddy!" Trucy cried in concern. At this point, Apollo was scared. He knew who this Prosecutor was from Phoenix's former cases. He'd hate to be fighting in court against this chick.

"H-Hey, Miss Whip Lady, calm down," a man with messy blond hair that was dressed close to a hippy, ran in front of Franziska to protect Phoenix. "I'm sure Nick has a good reason to- YEOW!" He was, of course, whipped and knocked to the ground.

"Don't try to get in my way, you disgraceful fool of a man covering for this foolish fool of a foolish ex defense attorney!" Franziska glared, looking obviously pissed.

"You certainly have a way of making scary enemies," Apollo said to his mentor, looking quite nervous, still cautiously backing several feet away from the angry prosecutor.

More people began stepping into the office, a large man with a green coat, a woman with short brown hair and glasses that looked almost nerdy, a woman in a strange purple kimono with long black hair and a teenage girl who also wore a strange kimono. The nerdy girl went to the hippy man's aid that was whipped by Franziska moments ago, while everyone else faced Phoenix, all looking angry or worse.

"NICK, I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU! YOU LIED TO US THAT YOU FORGED EVIDENCE!" The black-haired lady with a kimono shouted, balling her fist. Apollo could only guess this must be Maya Fey.

"Maya, I can explain..." Phoenix said, putting his hands up.

"You got a lot of nerve, pal! Mr. Edgeworth has been sticking up for you for seven years, even covering for you during Kristoph Gavin's first trial with that forged bloodied card!" the Detective shouted.

"Wait, you knew about the card too, Miles?"

"Of course I knew! I was supposed to have taken that case before I handed it over to Payne. It was clear from the start that the card was forged and yet you still had the nerve to cover up for that bastard and even lie to your own student that you brought that forged evidence!" Edgeworth glared angrily.

"That card! I forgot about that! Wait, so it wasn't you that created that forged evidence?" Apollo asked Phoenix in disbelieve.

"Forged, what are you...? Don't tell me that...!" Trucy gasped in shock, covering her mouth. "Polly, I'm so sorry, I didn't know! I thought..."

"Trucy, how did you get that card?"

"....I saw Mr. Gavin, your former mentor, throw away that card and I thought..."

"You thought he was destroying evidence," Apollo realized, staring at Phoenix, who looked nervous and saddened. "Why didn't you tell me!?"

"That's what we'd like to know! Explain yourself, Phoenix Wright, NOW!" Edgeworth glared coldly. Apollo made a note to himself to never make this man angry. His glares made the temperature slowly drop one degree per second.

"And, don't try to lie to us this time, Nick!" Maya glared with puffy cheeks. She then smirked, showing a glowing green object in her hand."I've got a magatama of my own."

That reminded Apollo that his bracelet never reacted when Phoenix told that lie about forging the card. Then again, he was new to using his newfound powers, so maybe Phoenix knew how to avoid it? He did live with Trucy, who held the same powers, for seven years.

"Enough of this foolish magic foolery! Wright, if you don't explain yourself, I will let my whip do the talking!" Franziska threatened, aiming her whip right next to Phoenix's feet, then making him jump.

"OKAY! OKAY! ... you got me. I did lie and.... I'm sorry. As Franz said, I was a fool," Phoenix admitted.

"Can you explain it in a way where all of us can understand?" Edgeworth demanded, showing his icy glare. Everyone was already feeling the chills.

"....Kristoph Gavin. At the time he was my friend or... I thought he was my friend. I met him after that trial, being he was Zak's former Defense Attorney before I took the case. He said he would help me prove my innocence. Then, I realized that Trucy was being followed and I got scared. Kristoph helped us by driving us from place to place. I don't have a drivers license still. Then, I went to the forger's place and I found out that he and his daughter were in the same position I was in, both being stalked and in fear of the real killer. I realized by that time that Kristoph was the forger, but I thought the stalker was the killer and.... I thought.... the real killer was trying to kill us. I realized that if I exposed Kristoph Gavin, I could be risking Trucy's, Mr. Misham's and Vera's life. The letter with the poisoned stamp was proof of that."

"Wait, so Mr. Misham knew the stamp was poisoned!?" Apollo gasped.

"Yes, though I thought it was from the murderer. Mr. Misham made the ultimate sacrifice to give me a case to work with in order to find the truth," Phoenix explained. So, Mr. Misham allowing one interview was probably to give the case a defendant or publicize the case. "I only knew Kristoph was the one forging the evidence, because of the nail polish, though I didn't know it was poisoned as well. I never thought Kristoph would do something like that, until..." Phoenix, then stared down at the floor with a look of betrayal. "Until Vera..." The room was dead silent.

So, Phoenix had thought that the the one that murdered Magnify Gramarye was stalking him and Trucy. He also thought that this same killer was the one that sent the poisoned stamp. Remembering the tapes from the trial, Phoenix had thought that the killer was Valant Gramarye. It wouldn't be until Phoenix had decided to investigate seven years later that he would find out it was a suicide. Perhaps, after finding this very truth was when Mr. Misham poisoned himself in order to find the truth. Then, it wouldn't be until Vera's fainting spell that Phoenix would realize, who the stalker was and sent the poisoned stamp.

"Nick dude..." Larry muttered.

"FOOLISH FOOL! So, you covered for that disgraceful fool of an Attorney, because of some foolish poison!?" Franziska glared, about to whip before Edgeworth stepped in. 

"Being friends with criminals is not anything new. You still kept in contact with Godot and Iris. Franziska and I also still have our visitations with Manfred Von Karma. It was exposing a criminal that was your friend and leaving yours and other's loved ones out in the open to be poisoned that terrified you. Poison is the one killing method that is almost impossible to trace back. You trusted Kristoph's friendship, not knowing that he was a traitor and the one responsible for the poisoned letter. By the time Vera passed out in the courtroom, that was when you decided to reveal the truth, having seen your friend's true colors. The trial was originally to expose the one that was threatening your, your daughter's, Mr. Misham and Vera's life," Edgeworth guessed, trying to understand things from Phoenix's perspective. He knew that feeling, having also lost his badge in order to protect someone precious to him. It was possible that Phoenix was planning on calling the police, but Mr. Misham and his daughter had done something illegal and thus, this was the only way of finding the truth while protecting his daughter. That was Edgeworth's guess.

"It's my fault. I'm so, so sorry. I should have told you the truth, but I thought I could trust Kristoph," Phoenix admitted, smiling bitterly. "Seems I'm still easily swayed by sweet words and a sweet face, like Dahlia Hawthorn and Matt Engarde."

"That's not true!" Apollo shouted as Phoenix turned to his student. "Sure, you're a bit outlandish. You have a strange way of thinking, but that's what makes you a great Attorney!"

"Apollo..."

"I was fooled by Kristoph too! Not every person we're close to is going to be faithful and trustworthy. Though, the ones that are our true friends will stick with us or eventually come back. From where I'm standing, it seems you have good company, even if one looks like she could kill me in my sleep," Apollo said, sweating when mentioning Franziska, who smirked, while wagging her finger.

"He's right. Nick, I should've believed in you. I thought you were a criminal and I couldn't work with you anymore. Mr. Justice stayed with you, even while believing you forged evidence. I'm really sorry, Nick," Maya apologized.

Pearl was crying next to her. "I'm sorry too, Mr. Nick. I really really hated you for what you did and it was all just a lie! I felt like you were betraying Mystic Maya!"

"I'm sorry too, Pal. Even Mr. Edgeworth was sticking up for you and I still believed that you forged evidence," Gumeshoe apologized as well.

"I... I'm sorry too, Mr. Wright," Maggey muttered sadly.

"Hmph, it's still your fault for lying and making me believe such a foolish lie, but... I was also a fool for believing in said foolish lie from a foolish fool of a foolish ex Attorney," Franziska smirked.

"No! I lied to you guys. You shouldn't blame yourselves for believing in my lies. It can't be helped," Phoenix argued.

Still, Apollo could understand all of this. Phoenix wasn't someone that would tell lies for no reason or his own benefits. It's also different to believe someone is not a criminal when they admit to it. Sure, there are cases where someone lies about being a criminal, but they're very rare and have some sort of motive behind said lies. As a lawyer, Phoenix would be very good at convincing everyone that he is a criminal, especially if it was to protect someone.

"Hey guys!" Larry cried out. "The only guilty one here is that Kristoph dude! He was the one who betrayed Nick's trust and took advantage of it. The only reason Edgey and I didn't believe it, is because we've known Nick since we were kids, so we know when he's lying."

"HOLD IT!" Apollo shouted. "You and Mr. Edgeworth have known Mr. Wright since you were.... kids?"

"Yep!"

"In a sense. I was friends with Nick during elementary school, then transferred no more than a month later before we reunited again 15 years later in court," Edgeworth admitted, his arms folded. It then dawned on Apollo that a few of these people called Phoenix Nick. They must be really close to call him that. Not to mention Phoenix is no longer an Attorney, so a majority of formalities have plummeted. 

"That's crazy!" Apollo said with bulging eyes.

"He often becomes mysterious and hetwitches his eyes," Larry smirked as Phoenix showed a shock-filledexpression. He bowed his head, a dark shadow covering his eyes.

"L-Larry!I do not!" Phoenix denied.

"Anyways, this Kristoph dude is gone now, so how about we just celebrate. We got our Nick back," Larry grinned childishly.

"Yes, it's good to see you too, Nick. We missed you, Pearly and I," Maya replied, smiling.

"I missed you guys too and it looks like you've grown up, Pearls,"Phoenix said, grinning happily.

"Thank you, Mr. Nick! It looks like you're going to need help cleaning up the office," Pearl said, looking around with her eyes, while biting her thumb nail.

"Still, it's a shame that you're still disbarred. You should work on trying to reclaim your badge. If not, I would gladly take on your protegee," Franziska smirked.

"Uh...I think I'd rather avoid whip burns, thanks," Apollo said, taking a step back.

"But Polly, it could be exciting, like-" Trucy grinned, hopping up and down.

"Trucy, no."

"Let's go for some burgers. I know a Burger Joint nearby!" Maya grinned. "Nick-"

"Maya, I'm not a Defense Attorney anymore, remember?" Phoenix reminded his former assistant.

"Oh yeah. But wait, what about Mr. Justice? He could pay for it!"

"Wh-Wha-Whaaaaaaaaaat!?" Apollo responded, shocked.

"Sure, and I will come too!" Trucy grinned.

"Hmmm, I suppose I will join in this celebration, if Edgeworth comes along," Franziska said.

"I will certainly come, if just to remind everyone how right I was and to never question me concerning Phoenix Wright ever again!" Edgeworth replied, showing his chilling glare as Detective Gumeshoe gulped, probably hoping he won't get a salary cut.

"HEY! I was right too! Also, I'll join in," Larry bragged, showing his smirk.

"Um.... I'll come too, pal!" Gumshoe grinned.

"I'll join in the fun," Maggey grinned, pumping her fists.

Apollo stood in silence, staring at his mentor, who smiled at him. Phoenix said, "here it comes."

Apollo smiled, then shouted boldly, 

"OBJECTION!!"

A/N: I told ya I would do a Phoenix Wright story XD I thought up this idea, because while I do believe Apollo Justice gets too much hate, one of the problems I somewhat agree with is the question "where are Phoenix's friends? Why didn't they come to help after Phoenix was disbarred?" Sure, Duel Destinies covers for Miles Edgeworth, but I didn't feel like the sequels ever explained more with Maya or Gumshoe. It doesn't make any sense why any of them would just suddenly abandon Phoenix like that, after being accused of forgery. Then, when playing the first case of Apollo Justice, a certain question dawned on me, "what if Phoenix Wright actually claimed to have forged evidence to cover for someone?" At the end of the first trial, Phoenix tells Apollo that the bloody card was a forgery and that he gave it to Trucy, then it dawned on me that it wouldn't make any sense, given who made the forged evidence and who just so happened to have gone to the Prosecution's Lobby at that moment (Kristoph Gavin). In other words, I theorize that Phoenix lied about giving that forged card to his daughter, probably because he still saw Kristoph as his friend despite what he was about to do. It wouldn't be until his visitation with Kristoph after Vera fainted that he realized Kristoph's betrayal and he was responsible for the poisoned letter. Before then, Phoenix didn't realize that Kristoph Gavin was faking that friendship. Kinda makes you feel sorry for the guy. But yeah, this one shot supports this theory.