Apollo sighed as he stared down at his messy notes from previous cases, he had possible theories in his head, but he wasn't sure of what to do in this case, he felt lost, he took in a deep breathe and tried to think positive, this wasn't a first trial, if he was calm and able to handle the other cases, then he can do this one, he put away his notebook and turned his head at the sound of footsteps walking towards him and trucy
vera stood their silent as ever, clutching a sketchbook in her hands, apollo smiled politely as he gave her a little wave, knowing she wasn't the speaking type
'Good morning!'
Vera just simply stood their, staring at the two with a blank expression, trucy got up from her spot on the couch and put on her best smile
'So! You're... Vera, right? I'm Trucy! Trucy Wright! That's "Wright" with a "W"! Uh, but not "write", right?'
she giggled, hoping this would do something, but her efforts were in vain, trucy poked her cheek in thought
'Um! We're... on your side! You can tell us anything! ...Please?'
she said with puppy dog eyes, vera blinked at her and stared back the two of them again
'...... ...Good morning...'
apollo almost forgot she could speak, trucy smiled proudly to herself
'Hmm, not bad, not bad. But I think you'd do better with a little smile, you know? You're so pretty! You need to sell yourself, you know?'
Apollo gently placed a hand of her shoulder
'Trucy! Let's... take it easy for starters'
she suggested, vera blinked as she held onto her book a little tighter, she then opened it up and made a quick little doodle, and showed it to the both of them
'...... ...Thank you for taking my case...'
was all she said, trucy blinked at her in surprise as apollo slowly nodded
"Okaaaaay... Well, that's a start, I guess"
he watched as vera started playing with the nail polish
"There she goes with the nail polish again..."
Trucy clapped her hands together
'That's great, really! It's so cultured!'
Vera lifted her eyes
'............ ...Want to try...'
'Oooooh! Really!?'
apollo rolled his eyes at the two as he re-opened his notebook again
"The victim, Drew Misham, was a forger. And a stolen painting was found in his studio. A life of crime, really... ...And maybe one that led to his death"
apollo took in a deep breath as he opened up his notebook and pen, ready and waiting for anything useful he can use in court
'Well, we will now... er... *cough* Begin the, er, trial of... Vuh... Vuh... Vuh... Vera Misham!'
both of the defense team narrowed their eyes at the judge
'...Is the judge OK? His voice is all raspy, and he's looking around all nervous-like'
trucy muttered, Judge cleared his throat again
'Erm... ahem. The repercussions of today's trial will, most likely, be felt for a long time. ...And may, indeed, alter our legal system forever'
he said in a wary tone, klavier stood across from them, cool and composed as ever, but apollo had seen him crumble from time to time, but it was not an easy job
'Today is a test of the Jurist System... ...and the first step toward a new order in our courts'
klavier said
'Daddy's secret mission!'
'The jurists will function like a jury. It is hoped their inclusion will help the courts to better reflect the people's will'
Apollo raised a brow as he look around the courthouse, he didn't see any jurists
'Why... aren't there any jurists in the courtroom?'
Klavier pointed at the wall to the left, where the court door was was
'Three closed-circuit cameras watch this courtroom at all times. The jurists have access to everything that transpires. Jurists! Judge well, and judge cool'
he said as he winked at them, the judge stared at him
'N-Now see here, Prosecutor Gavin! I-I was going to say that!'
Klavier smiled a little
'Ah, my apologies, Herr Judge'
the judge sighed in disappointment but continued on with his job
'Ahem. Jurists! Today, er... Judge today's trial "coolly", if you would be so kind!'
Apollo let that sink in
"The jurists are unbound by the letter of the law. They don't affect the trial with evidence... but by their "feelings". And we're about to find out just what effect they're going to have"
apollo wasn't to sure on how he felt about the jurist system, it did seem fitting for his boss to do something like this, mr wright had always been very outspoken about corruption within the law system, and had a very rebellious way on how he did things
'Very well, Prosecutor Gavin. The details of the case, if you would'
he nodded
'The victim is the painter Drew Misham. He was killed in his own studio. His coffee... was poisoned. By whom, you ask? By none other than the defendant, Vera Misham'
'There wasn't any poison in the coffee!'
apollo questioned, he felt his heart flutter at the smirk klavier gave him, damnit, why did he have to be so smug yet so attractive?!
'Achtung... Someone has been doing their homework! Indeed. Poison was not present in the coffee... but on the mug itself'
the judge glanced at him
'The mug...? Ah, residue was found on the rim, I see'
'The autopsy report describes the manner of our victim's death'
'The court accepts this as evidence'
klavier nodded as he gave it to the judge
'According to this report... ...the victim's death was caused by "atroquinine" poisoning'
'A chemical compound that does not occur naturally. Lethal dosage is a mere 0.002mg. A touch of atroquinine in the body... ...is the touch of the Reaper's scythe'
he said, the judge nodded as he placed the file down
'Very well, Prosecutor Gavin. You may present your witness'
'I have for you today a simple man, for a simple case. ...A man who witnessed the murder in its entirety'
apollo groaned mentally in his head
"That journalist, no doubt..."
'The witness will state his name and occupation'
klavier asked, bruhsel was looking around in astonishment
'Ah! Right! Well, for starters, my name's Spark Brushel! My job is... a lone observer of the world!'
Apollo rolled his eyes
'In other words, a freelance journalist, right?'
Brushel ignored him
'Ahem! If you don't mind, I'd like to state something here for the record'
the judge nodded
'Yes, Mr. Brushel?'
'I dislike conclusions, specifically, the jumping to aspect of conclusions. "Preconceptions Make Park Sandbox of Endless Desert Waste..." end quote'
Apollo stared at him
'But, you are a journalist. You said so yourself yesterday
'...Well, that's true, yes. But you must understand, I stand before you today a man with a dream! I'm offering you my testimony in exchange for exclusive rights to the story! "Scoop Turns Mr. Brushel Into THAT Mr. Brushel!" end quote'
Judge banged his gavel down
'...Let's hear your testimony then, shall we?'
"A "simple case", eh, Gavin? For me, the jury... is still out"
'I visited the studio around 9:00 that night to do the interview. The first outsider to enter the atelier! "Journalistic History Made", end quote, His daughter brought us coffee right after we started, And you know what happened next. "Star Falls!" end quote, No one else entered the room beside her the whole time'
Judge stroked his white long beard as he went deep into thought
'Hmm... That does sound like a simple case. Unless... you were the one who poisoned him!'
Brushel jumped at that, his expression looking like he had just seen a ghost
'Wh-Wh-Wh-Whatareyousaying!? Judge!'
the judge cleared his throat
'Ahem. Need I remind you, the cameras are rolling today. I felt the need to be a bit dramatic'
Klavier smirked playfully as he leaned in
'You didn't do it, did you?'
bashel looked like he was about to faint, apollo had to keep himself from laughing, one of them few things he liked about about klavier was his sens of humour,
'M-M-M-M-Medoathinglikethat!? Come on! That's like... "Newsmaker Making the News", end quote. Or even "Contemporary Witch-Hunt", end quote! I know! "Wild Accusations Rock Courtroom", end quote'
klavier chuckled
'Ah ha ha ha. Rock, indeed'
he said, he glanced at apollo and gave a little playful wink, apollo held back a blush as he shyly smiled, trucy noticed but choose not to say anything on the wink, but instead on the joke
'Prosecutor Gavin sure looks like he's having fun'
apollo grinned mischievously
'I'm so happy for him'
'Very well, Mr. Justice, your cross-examination, please'
apollo nodded as he reviewed his notes for a good ten minutes before he started his questioning
'So he either took a sip, or he didn't, and then fell over?'
'Oh yes! Indubitably! Just like that! Wham bam!'
Apoll hmmed as he wrote in his notebook
"So Mr. Misham drank the coffee, and fell over immediately... Hmm. I think Brushel's telling the truth, too. Hmm. Should I get him to talk about something else?'
apollo thought for a moment before taking out the coffee mug in question from his bag and presenting it to court
'You know what I have a problem with? A particular property of the poison used, atroquinine'
the judge raised a brow at this
'Oh? Prosecutor Gavin was quite clear about the poison. A lethal dosage of 0.002mg paralyzes the central nervous system. If you drank that, even you, Mr. Justice, would be reduced to a quivering pile...'
Apollo gave a him a look before continuing on
'Unfortunately, we weren't told everything. There was a vital omission in Prosecutor Gavin's information!'
Klavier stared at him with a curious expression
'An omission?'
'Atroquinine is as virulent as he says. But death doesn't come upon ingestion, not immediately. That's because atroquinine is slow-acting!'
'Slow-acting!'
Brushel was darting his head back and fourth in panic
'Whatwhatwhatwhat!?'
apollo cleared his throat before speaking
According to one forensic scientist..."It's one of the most virulent poisons, but is absorbed into the body astonishingly slowly. It takes at least 15 minutes from the time of ingestion for adverse effects to show",. If we suppose that the moment Mr. Misham sipped the coffee was when he sealed his fate... ...then he would still have had time left to enjoy his last cup of joe!'
the court started to murmur amongst themselves, the judge banged his gavel loudly in the court
'Order! Order!!! What's the meaning of this!? If what the defense says is correct... ...why, that contradicts the entire testimony we've just heard!'
Apollo raised a brow at him
'Well, Mr. Brushel? Anything to say... on the record!?'
'Slow-acting. S-L-O-W A-C-T... It was virulent, alright. Even then, it had already begun digging its claws into the journalist'
Trucy gave him a look
'...He's working on his scoop'
Apollo sighed mentally in his head, klavier looked over at him
'...It's "Brushel", ja? Herr Brushel... let's take a trip back down memory lane'
'Huh?'
the witness said, looking up at him
'Did the victim really die the instant he took a sip? Think it over. This is vital'
'You know what I think? I think that was... "A Not-So-Subliminal Suggestion"... end quote'
he said as he sribbled down in his notepad, klavier titled his head a little
'I admit, it does cause a problem if he died when you say he died. ...I would be forced to say auf Wiedersehen to my simple case. And you would be forced to say farewell to your article'
bushel raised a brow
'Come again?'
'You can't write a story based on conjecture, can you? And as the case drags on, other reporters will pick up the scent. ...And you'll be forced to kiss your exclusive scoop goodbye'
Brushel stared down at his notepad in deep thought
'Scoop... Scoop... .....................! Look, wait. Just wait a second. Just one second'
the judge waited with anticipation
'We're waiting, we're waiting! Out with it!'
'I think I just recalled a so-called "important detail"! "A Revival of Recollection", end quote! "A Story's Survival", end quote!'
Apollo eye twitched
'"Attorney Utterly Confused", end quote'l
'Actually, I did notice something when I visited the studio. I'd heard of poison that "takes its sweet time", see!'
klavier snapped his fingers
'...But not what I've been saying for the last few minutes, apparently'
'Mr. Brushel! Are you saying you noticed something that explains what happened!?'
Brushel grinned
'You bet I am! The "Antidote For A Poisonous Contradiction", end quote, you might say!'
'Or "I Still Have No Idea What You're Talking About", end quote, I might say'
apollo said a little more hotly
'I figured it out, but only after an in-depth interview! See, thanks to my journalism skills, I know who poisoned that coffee!'
the court started to go wild as the judge banged down his gavel
'Order! Order! Order!'
Klavier raised a brow
'As far as I can tell, the witness is standing by his testimony. ...That Mr. Misham died the instant after he drank'
'Of course I'm standing by my testimony! ...And my dream of exclusive rights to this story!'
Klavier sighed
'...Ach. I suppose it was too much to hope for'
Apollo stared at him
'What was?'
'Of course he wouldn't choose a simple case, not him'
the judhe glanced at him in confusion
'"Him"...?'
'Phoenix Wright, who else?'
he said bluntly, apollo blinked in surprise
'Achtung, Herr Brushel! Report for us, if you would. What is it that you noticed?'
bushel went silent, that caught apollo's attention, the judge banged down his gavel :
'This court is a critical trial of the Jurist System. I'm afraid no room for doubt is permissible. You will testify to the court about what you noticed!'
he ordered, apollo flipped a page in his notebook as he sighed