Febuary 20th, 2019 (11:03 AM) - Wright & Co Law offices
The doorbell rings. "I'll get it!", Maya exclaimed. The young medium opened the door to a tanned women wearing a red tracksuit over a white tank top and blue sports shorts. her brown hair was bound up into a high ponytail which perked upwards. She looked distressed, shifting around in her green trainers. Maya brought the women to meet Mr Pheonix Wright, the infamous "Ace Attorney" as she would have a case for them.
The women was Aoi Asahina a top athlete and winner of many swimming competitions. Pheonix wondered whatever *she* would need *him* for. "I'm here to ask you to represent my friend in court" Ms. Asahina told them. "He's my neighbour, Makoto Naegi" - "Nick, that's the guy who won 10 million dollars in the lottery last month!", Phoenix' assistant whispered to him. She still knew about that? Asahina, who overheard her, answered: "Yes, that's right. Makoto was that winner. He moved into my appartment complex shortly after."
Phoenix got back to the topic at hand: "Ms Asahina, why is Mr Naegi on trial?" - "They said he killed another one of the tenants. Sayaka to be specific." Maya burst out in shock at the mention of the victims name: "Do you mean THE Sayaka? The new Popstar sensation?!" - "...Yes" Aoi answered meekly. "NIIICK! Sayaka Maizono is dead!!" Maya cried devestaded. "I'm just as shocked as you are Maya. Please, don't cry", Phoenix tried calming down his mourning assistant and gave her a tissue to wipe her tears, In truth he never knew about this supposed Pop-Idol until just now.
After Maya had calmed down again Aoi asked coutiously: "So, will you represent Makoto in court?" Phoenix Wright was about to answer when Maya proclaimed "Of course we will!" and Phoenix added "Yes, we'll represent your friend in court, Ms Asahina" - "Thank you so much!" the sporty female exclaimed in relief.
Febuary 20th, 2019 (11:37 AM) - Detention Center, Visitors Room
Phoenix and Maya had gone to the detention center to meet Makoto Naegi, their new client. Makoto's friend Aoi who had engaged the pair just minutes before tagged along with them. As they stepped into the visitors room Aoi looked as if she wanted to jump right at Makoto and hug him, but that of course was not possible because of the glass pane seperating the room's halves. Makoto was an average looking young man wearing a fairly normal suit and tie which where a dark green kind of black. He had green eyes and nougat brown hair with a tall standing ahoge.
Aoi introduced Makoto to his attorney and the attorney's young assistant, then Mr Wright begann his questioning: "Alright, Mr Naegi. Could you tell me a bit more about yourself?" - "You sound a bit like that guy who lives above me, Hehe. I think his name was... Hifumi." Makoto trailed off a bit before quickly correcting himself: "Ah, but that's not what's important here, sorry." - 'I was just about to say...!' Phoenix thought to himself.
"Let's see... I'm a teacher. I work at Blackroot Junior Middle School", Makoto began "I'd say I'm a pretty average guy, maybe more gung-ho then most, but still very average." The attorney asked him the next question: "What's your relationship with the victim - Ms Maizono?" - "She was my next door neighbor. But we did go to the same middle school. It's actually the same school I'm teaching at right now as a matter of fact" At this point Maya chimed in cheeckily: "So are you childhood friends?" - "No, we barely even interacted." the man's answer left the girl mildly disappointed as he rubbed the back of his head. "Life sure is funny..." He mumbled melancholically.
Phoenix carried on "Can you tell me about the circumstances that lead to you being arrested?" Makoto thought on it for a moment then he let out a small breath "I'm getting asked so many questions today..." - 'Well that can't be helped when you are under suspicion of *murder*' Phoenix thought to himself. "I guess, I should start from the beginning, right?" Makoto begann with retelling his story: "Yesterday Sayaka and I decided to switch rooms for one night. when I got ready to go to work the next day after breakfast, I think that was around 7:20 AM, I saw the door to my own appartment was open a bit so I checked inside and..." He paused for a second at the dark memory "I saw the room in complete disarray, like a fight had happened in there. I was confused as to what happened so I stepped inside and saw the bathroom door standing wide open. Naturally, I peeked inside..." Makoto shuddered at the images "I saw Sayaka sitting slumped down in the shower with a knife in her stomach." Makoto finished retelling the events visibly unnerved. "What happened afterwards?" Phoenix inquired the young teacher. "I think I blacked out from the shock of seeing a dead body. I woke up in the cafeteria where some officers questioned the other tenants. And well... then I was arrested." Makoto gave a nervous chuckle "I guess they suspected me for the murder because the crime scene was my room...?"
Now Maya asked Makoto a question: "So why did you change rooms with Sayaka?" - "Well last night she came to me and told me that someone was trying to break into her room..."
***
Makoto opened the door to a distressed looking Sayaka. It surprised him to see her so shaken up and pale. "S-Sayaka! Is everything okay?" - "Sorry to come by so late. but something really strange just happened" Makoto could hear the fear in her voice. "Something...strange?" He inqired. "Just a little while ago, I was laying down in my room... And all of a sudden, my door started ratteling and shaking." She sounded like all the air had been squeezed out of her lungs. "It was like someone was trying to force the door open. My door was locked, so they couldn't get in, of course. But they started shaking the door harder and harder." Makoto tensed up hearing her say that.
"I was so scared I couldn't even move." Sayaka mumbled. "S-so what happened!?" Makoto asked her in a slight panic. "After a while it just stopped... I let some time go by then I got up and opened the door to check outside. But there was nobody there." Sayaka wasn't really someone special in Makotos life but hearing that sombody tried to force their way into her room made him want to help. "Who would do something like that?" he asked. "It's not like I'm suspicious of anyone here. but still... it makes me nervous. What if something like that happened in the middle of the night? What would I do then...?" Sayaka was panicked and still in shock about what happened. "Y-you don't have to worry about that. I'm sure it was just one of the tenants who mistook your room for theirs." - "But they didn't even try to insert a key into the lock!" Makoto's attempt to calm her down wasn't really effective "T-then... Why don't you sleep in my room tonight? would that make you feel better?" He suggested nonchelantly.
***
"In the end we decided to simply switch rooms since... sleeping together in one room, is kinda..." Makoto broke off. "Wow Makoto, you're really admirable, putting yourself into danger like that" Aoi commented "Uhm, nobody else tried to break in that night. But yes, I guess you're right, Hina." - "But wait, couldn't have one of you slept on a couch or something?" Phoenix asked for clarity. "Oh yes, that's right! You don't know about our appartment complex yet!", the athlete exclaimed. The lawyer was confused at her statement. At first it sounded as if she was agreeing with him.
"Is there something special about it?" Phoenix asked, and Makoto quickly answered to clear things up for the Attorney: "Yes, that's right. In our appartment complex every 'appartment' is actually just one room with a bathroom included", Makoto cleared things up. "You'll understand when you see it" Aoi added assuringly.
After Makoto accepted Pheonix Wright as his defense attorney the lawyer prepared to take his leave with the other 2 but not before asking him to write a letter of request, which would allow the lawyer to investigate at the crime scene more freely. "When you get to the appartment keep an eye out for Kyoko Kirigiri. She's an investigator working with the police and also lives there. Maybe she can help you out in some way." Makoto said. "Thank you for the advice, Mr. Naegi." his Attorney thanked him, then Pheonix, Maya and Aoi left for the Appartment complex.
Febuary 20th, 2019 (12:33 PM) - Mirai Balkon Room Appartments, parking lot
The 3 arrived at the appartment complex where Sayaka had been murdered. "This building kinda looks like the appartment Cindy Stone lived in" Phoenix notices, remembering that one time his kind-of best friend Larry who would later become his first client pointed to a similar looking house saying "That's it, Nick! her house! Thats where my Darling lives!" God he was such a hopeless and sappy romantic. "Isn't that the victim of your first ever trial?" Maya nudged at Nick, interrupting his flashback "I told you about that case *once*! And you *still* remember the victims *full* name??" Phoenix snapped at her in surprise. Even he had trouble recalling it at that first ever Trial of his. Aoi chimed in: "You could become a lawyer yourself with that good of a memory, Maya." Maya giggled in response: "I'd rather help out Nick with it, 'cuz he's so scatterbrained" - "Hey! I'm literally right here!", Phoenix complained. "Anyway..." He took a deep breath in "Let's go investigate the crime scene."
Aoi told them Makotos Room number - 307. Then she split off, saying: "I'll be in the Cafeteria on the first floor."
"This appartment building has a cafeteria?" Pheonix wondered to himself after the Athlete had left. Maya shared his confusion: "It seems we don't know a lot of important stuff about this building. We should ask Aoi more after investigating Makoto's room."
Febuary 20th, 2019 (12:40 PM) - Mirai Balkon Room Appartments, Balkon Floor 3
"Here's room 307! " Maya exclaimed and waved to her unofficial employer after having run off first, down the third floor corridor to check for said room number. The door she beckoned the attorney to had been blocked by yellow policetape. Right when Phoenix was about to knock on the door however, Maya noticed something strange. "Hey Nick, the nameplate on the door doesn't say 'Naegi' like it's supposed to." - "Huh, you're right, Maya." The nameplate said 'Maizono'. "But that's the last name of the victim, right?" Maya questioned slightly confused. "Perhaps Aoi told us the wrong room number...?" Phoenix mumbled while Maya started looking around again. "Hey look, this room has Makoto's name on it." She pointed to the next door, Room #308. Indeed the rooms nameplate said "Naegi".
What was going on here? Intruiged, Phoenix touched and tried to wiggle at the nameplate. Turns out: it was moveble and could actually be removed quite easily from it's holder "Maybe someone switched the nameplates, Maya" - "Why would anyone do that, though?" His assistant wondered. "Maybe it was just a prank?" - "Who knows." Phoenix shrugged indifferently. "What we do know though is that the crime scene was Makotos room, #307, so let's go there."
Phoenix knocked on the door with the policetape on it, marking it as a crimescene and therefore as Mr Naegi's room. A familiar scruffy detective opened the door. It was detective Dick Gumshoe. "Sorry pal, only officers of the law are allowed to step in-" The detective broke off mid-routine-sentence as he spotted the acquainted lawyer "Oh it's you, Pal! " he let out, pleasently surprised to see the Attorney - "Hello, Detective Gumshoe." Phoenix greeted the detective, unsurprised as he had an inkling of a premonition that he would meet this familiar face once more. "I'm really sorry pal, you aren't allowed at the crime scene either, I'm afraid... " the detective explained, less pragmatic this time. Phoenix presented him the letter of request. "Huh? what's this, pal?" - "It's a letter of request from Mr. Naegi. I will be representing him in court." The detective read through the letter and then said: "Oh pal, you're done for! This case is clear and shut!" He bagan laughing confidently after saying that. "That's what you say almost every time. And Nick still wins the case! " Maya countered the brown haired detective. "Well come on in and look around as much as you want, pal." The detective begged them inside, still smiling confidently. Phoenix and his assistant ducked below the police tape to enter the room.
Mirai Balkon Room Appartments - Room #307 (Makoto Naegi's room)
The room was in a terrible state to say the least: There were slashes in the wallpaper, scratches on the floor, and the bed was uttereally trashed. A low table and chair had been knocked over, aswell as the trash can. "This definetly looks like signs of a struggle, to me" Phoenix commented on the sorry state of the room. "Yeah, pal. Seems there was a big fight here between victim and culprit, even I can tell." the Detective agreed.
"Maybe this golden Katana here was involved in the fight in some way?" Maya wondered as she croutched down to a golden katana laying on the floor. The swords sheath was laying a bit further away, near the small shelving unit, on top of which laid the holder for said Katana. While inspecting the sheath Maya noticed something "Hey Nick, look at this!" - "What is it Maya?" Maya picked up the sheath and showed it to the Lawyer "There is a gash in this sheath!" the medium said while proudly presenting the sheath to Phoenix. It looked like a sharp object had cutten into it. Detective Gumshoe yelled at the two angrily: "Hey! What do you think you're doing there, pal!? Don't go messing around the crime scene!!" - "No need for that." A calm voice came from the other side of the room.
A tall women dressed in a wine red suit with long silver hair emerged from the bathrom door. She wore black leather gloves and a black ribbon tied some strands of hair together into a single braid which ran down at the side of her body. "I already took all the pictures I need from the crime scene." The woman continued in the same calm tone. "Ms. Kirigiri!" Gumshoe let out surprised at her sudden emergence and also at her indifference to the disturbance of the crimescene.
Could it be? Was this the person Makoto wanted Phoenix to find? Mr. Wright approached the woman "Excuse me, miss? Could you by chance be Kyoko Kirigiri?" - "Yes, that is me" - "I'm Phoenix Wright, Attorney at law; And this is my assistant Maya Fey." He showed off his badge while intoducing himself and his assistant.
"Let me guess, you are representing Makoto in the trial tomorrow?" Kyoko guessed right. Phoenix was startled at her accuracy: "H-how did you know?" - "I could hear your exchange with detective Gumshoe from before." The elegant woman said bluntly.
"My client told me I should find you, miss - as it would be beneficial for my defense in court." Phoenix informed the female investigator. "Just as intuitive as ever, I see" She said smiling to herself for a second, seemingly thinking of someone, before quickly turning back to the lawyer with a serious face: "I have made some photos of the crime scene. If you want, I could lend them to you as evidence." - "Yes, that would be great." Phoenix was glad that Kyoko didn't need any kind of convicing. Lord knows how many witnesses have robbed him off his last strands of patience.
With that Kyoko handed Phoenix a bunch of polaroid pictures. "This should be enough, right?" - "Y-yes. Plenty." Phoenix said, startled once more. This time it was because of the sheer amount of evidence.
"Just one more thing, " She began again "I would like to talk to Makoto, so after you guys are finished with your investigation, please let me know. I'll be in my room downstairs. It's two-hundred." After she had finished speaking the women took her leave, not waiting for a response from the dumbfounded lawyer, ducking under the policetape as she did, leaving a lingering silence in the room.
Maya put the sheeth she had still been holding onto back down to the floor, but as soon as she did, she let out a surprised sound. "What's wrong Maya?" Phoenix asked his assistant. "The gold coating came off the sheath and now it's all stuck to my hands!" Maya explained troubled. "Looks like the gold coating on the sword and the sheeth comes off pretty easily. You should wash that off when we go to the bathroom, Maya. Try to avoid touching anything else for now, okay?" that last part was delivered with a tiny synical undertone. She usually went around all over, putting her littly grabby hands left and right. It usually worked out in their favor so Phoenix never tried to pay it more than five seconds of anger. Still he couldn't help but grow frustrated with it being a constant source of anxiety over almost-certain-trouble, so he was glad that that habit was working against itself today. She won't be touching anyting anytime soon, he thought. At least for as long as it takes for them to enter the rooms bathroom.
As Phoenix Wright and Maya Fey continued their investigation, they found an almost completely used up lint roller, and discovered a brand new toolkit in one of the drawers of Makotos desk. Other than that no more clues could be found so they moved to the bathroom.
Mirai Balkon Room Appartments - Room #307, Bathroom
In the bathroom a dead Sayaka still laid slumped against the wall, which was a bit unusual. Normally Phoenix would be investigating a crimescene when the victims body was already gone, shipped off to the hospital for autopsy. The way she laid there brought back familiar images of his murdered mentor Mia Fey. Both of the pair had pained looks on their faces. Even though there was some kind of resemblence to that fateful day, which had lead to their paths to cross in such a tragic way, it was still different enough to move past those thoughts; Phoenix used those memories for gaining the much needed determination.
A knife had been lunged into Sayakas stomach; It looked exactly like Makoto told them before. "Time to examine the body closer." Phoenix said. He wasn't exactly eager but it was a necesary action. Upon closer inspection it turned out that the knife she was stabbed with was a kitchen knife. Nothing inheretly unusual, but still something to keep in mind "You should check her hands, Nick" Maya suggested since she still couldn't really touch anything without leaving a gold mark. If it weren't for that reason she totally would have done it herself. Thinking it was a good idea, Phoenix carefully turned Sayaka's hands to get a better look at it. If there was any gold foil stuck on there, it would have proven that she had held that sword at some point. But unfortunetly her palms were perfectly clean, safe for her left index finger which had some blood smeared on it. Additionally Sayaka's right wrist was swollen up a bit.
While the attorney made these discoveries, Maya was looking through the photos that Kyoko had given them earlier, because she really needed something to do, after finally having washed her hands of course "Hey Nick look at these photos!" Maya suddenly exclaimed "-They show everything we've found so far on Sayaka's body." Maya was right: There was a picture of each palm, a close up on the body's right wrist, a photo of the entire body and then some other pictures showing Makoto's room from various angles, as well as a picture of the katana and it's sheeth respectively. However there was one picture that was a mystery to them. It showed bloody writing on a wall. The writing looked like the numbers 1 1 0 3 7 to be exact.
Neither of them saw any bloody writing at the scene so naturally they wondered where this picture was taken. That's when Phonix noticed something at the right edge of the photo, what looked like strands of blue hair. Making the connection he gently tilted Sayaka's body to the side and discoverd the bloody numbers hidden behind their back. "This is it. Sayaka's dying message." Maya whispered upon seeing the writing. It was another eerie parrallel to her Sister's murder; However this message was shrouded in complete mystery as none of the two could see any kind of meaning in these numbers.
There were no more clues to find at the scene so they decided to go talk to Aoi who was waiting for them in the dining hall.
to be continued in Part 2