//------------------------------// // 25: The Heart's Turnabout, Part 9 - Expert Opinions // Story: The Lawyer and The Unicorn (T-Rated Version) // by Firesight //------------------------------// Music: Breaking Point ~ Choking on Ashes Spike couldn’t sleep. Twilight was due home in but another two days, but his anxieties continued to get the better of him, his fears trying to convince him that she would decide to stay with Phoenix Wright and never return to Equestria… Or worse, if she did, she somehow wouldn’t be the same pony she was before. No matter how many times he told himself differently or read the last letters he’d received from her and Maya assuring him otherwise, some part of him continued to insist that all was not well; that there was a very real danger that Twilight would not keep her promise… That somehow, Twilight was in danger a world away. That he’d written the pair earlier that night but had not received a reply didn’t help his anxieties any, and more than once he thought to go out and seek Twilight’s friends, only to decide he’d pestered them enough over the past several days, needing their company after discovering he no longer wanted to stay at the library alone. Even sleeping in Twilight’s bed was no longer helping him; he was resting quite fitfully and whenever he did sleep, dreams gave way to nightmares of being alone and abandoned often enough that he was increasingly afraid to close his eyes. Still, he was but a baby dragon, and the needs of his young body would not be denied. After two hours of tossing and turning, as well as a whispered prayer to the dragon lords of old, he finally nodded off, only to go into an immediate nightmare of Twilight being menaced by a shadowy figure, of which the only features he could make out were slitted eyes and glowing pointed teeth. “Twilight!” he called to her and tried to reach her, only to find her being dragged further away from him no matter how fast he ran, finally leaving him on his knees crawling forward, a paw reached out for her in desperation as a murky blackness surrounded her, one he was somehow certain he’d seen once before. “Don’t leave me…” he begged her through tear-filled eyes, only for her to turn towards him, fear and confusion in her eyes. “Spike… help me…” she called to him in a dull voice. “I don’t know what’s happening…” was the last thing she said before the darkness enveloped her and two new winged figures dressed in the armor of the lunar guard suddenly appeared at his side, causing him to stumble back in shock. “Sir Spike!” the two bat ponies bowed to him. “By order of the Moon Princess, we are instructed to escort you through the dreamscape to the location of your mistress!” “Sir Spike? My mistress?” he blinked despite his surprise, having never heard those forms of address before. “Wait… y-you mean Twilight?” he asked in what he thought was forlorn hope, not knowing if what he was seeing was real or not. “Yes,” they quickly confirmed. “She is in danger, and our princess believes that the presence of her friends will help her…” Music: “Storytime (Instrumental Ver.)” By Nightwish “Your Honor, as an expert witness and authority on unicorn magic, including the potential effects of mating aura, I request the immediate testimony of the greatest sorcerer and most learned unicorn in all of pony history, the great Starswirl the Bearded,” Mia said solemnly into the pall of silence that had fallen over the courtroom, even The Nightmare herself struck momentarily speechless. “He can shed light on not only exactly what happened to Phoenix Wright, but how, far from proving the prosecution’s charges of rape and illegal use of magic, it disproves them in total.” Trixie didn’t immediately respond, still staring stunned at one of the most legendary unicorns in Equestrian history. “Hello, Nightmare,” said unicorn spoke in a deep, clear voice with an accent that the humans present could only describe as cultured English. “Know that I have waited nearly two millennia for this day.” The Nightmare stared as well, then smiled. “Why hello, sorcerer. I will admit your presence is unexpected, but still welcome. And yet, I cannot fathom why you would speak to me in such an unfriendly manner. One would almost think you bear a grudge against me.” She closed her eyes and grinned. The unicorn stallion’s eyes flashed, but he turned to face the princesses, his expression softening somewhat. “My students…” he nodded to them, then made a show of looking them over in disapproval. “I see that you are every bit as unlearned now as you were eighteen hundred years ago. Clearly, few of my lessons took.” To everyone’s surprise, both Celestia and Luna gave an involuntary cringe, an echo of a scolding from a long-ago foalhood as Celestia answered for both of them. “And I see that you are still as exacting and uncompromising a taskmaster as you ever were… my tutor.” She bowed her head in deep respect. “We bid thee welcome and are honored to see thee again, mentor,” Luna hastily added, duplicating her sister’s gesture. His facade cracked, but only for a moment. “I would say the honor is mine, but as I find myself among far less exalted company with so much at stake, reunions can wait,” he announced before turning his attention to the bench, giving Trixie a short bow. “Your Honor… I should hope my name and reputation proceeds me, even now. But let me be clear—I am here for one reason and one reason only: to make The Nightmare pay for what she has done. Not just to Twilight Sparkle and the other spirits present, but to me,” he said with a glower at the dream demon, who simply closed her eyes and grinned as if in pleasant remembrance. “You are, of course, welcome in this court,” Trixie replied, unable to stop staring at him. “Though if you truly are Starswirl the Bearded, your speech is surprisingly modern and your appearance is not as it is so often described…” her prosecutor mind pointed out. “I hate that name…” his eyes narrowed. “My proper title is Starswirl the Sage! It was those two who called me ‘the bearded!’ A little joke they had between them…” he pointed at the two princesses as he spoke. The barest of smiles broke their lips. “Come now, tutor. We were only trying to teach you the one subject you had no knowledge of—humor.” Celestia closed her eyes and took on a coy tone. “We will vouch that this is truly he, Your Honor.” “Aye! ‘Twas but a lark when we dubbed thee that. And we would not have spread it but for the fact that thou so hated it!” Luna suddenly wore a lopsided grin. “And thus, thou art now known as ‘The Bearded’ for all time!” she finished triumphantly. “As incorrigible as ever, I see…” he shook his head in only half-feigned disgust, then turned back to Trixie. “With regards to speech, I am still a scholar and my thirst for knowledge transcends life and death. Thus, I have kept up on the history and language of both worlds from the Summerlands. As for my appearance… perchance this is what you were expecting?” he willed his body into his more classic appearance, much older and more wizened with a long white beard, his sudden transformation causing Trixie to flinch. “I take the form I had when I was younger and The Nightmare tempted me. I wanted her to see me again as I was then. I want to face her as I was then!” he said as he turned himself back to his younger self. “Tempted you? Why my dear Starswirl, if memory serves, you came to me.” The Nightmare mocked. “You actually sought to trap me. Thought you could control and contain me as I recall, offering me release if I would but do one little thing for you. And perchance you would care to inform this court what it was?” “Silence!” Starswirl spat, the bite in his voice making both Celestia and Luna snap to attention and sit up straighter in their chairs like they were back in their long-ago classroom again. “I have been summoned here to give testimony, and I do not like being made to wait!” he marched over to the witness stand where Maya still stood. “Stand aside, you moronic mare! In the crude words of your own language, I have to unscrew what you screwed up!” “Screwed up? ‘Moronic mare’?” Maya went red again. “I don’t know who you think you are, you snooty, stupid stallion, but I’m not done with Sparkle yet! So you can just wait your turn!” she crossed her arms and refused to move. “And just who do you think you are?” he looked her over from head to toe, inspecting her wounds unsympathetically. “You think just because you can’t face what you feel, you have the right to sacrifice both worlds? I’ve been watching the proceedings even before I got here, and a more foalish and foalhardy filly I don’t think I’ve ever seen! And considering I had to teach those two, that’s saying a lot!” he pointed back at Celestia and Luna, who glanced at each other and grinned in shared memory. “I’ve waited eighteen hundred years for this, little girl! And I will not be kept from my long-awaited revenge by a two-bit human mystic who only thinks of herself and can’t see how she’s being used or the damage she’s doing!” Starswirl’s horn flared and suddenly Maya disappeared from behind the witness stand in a flash of light only to reappear in the stands. “Wha… hey!” Maya protested but found herself unable to re-enter the pit through a fresh barrier Starswirl erected. “Wow, a remote dreamscape teleport…” Twilight noted in some wonder, seemingly taking interest in the ancient unicorn’s presence despite The Nightmare’s influence. “I didn’t think that was possible…” “Well then. I think this court will be more than happy to accommodate you, honored Sage.” Trixie bowed her head in real respect, looking very pleased at how Maya had been dealt with. “As you have been summoned to offer expert testimony on Mister Wrong’s physical transformation, I will direct both counsels to facilitate exactly that. Proceed, Prosecutor Moon.” “That would be my pleasure, Your Honor,” she replied easily, and it sounded to Phoenix like she meant it. “State your full name and occupation, witness.” “Such tiresome preliminaries. But so be it. I am Starswirl the Sage. In life a scholar and teacher, in death a keeper and collector of knowledge; a patron of the arcane arts and thus the foremost authority on magic in all its forms and effects!” “Also Equestria’s most immodest and insufferable pony,” The Nightmare noted. “To say nothing of one of its most arrogant. Let us first establish why you are here, shall we?” She gave the unicorn stallion a sideways grin. “Not relevant, Your Honor,” Vinyl looked pleased with the proceedings as Mia continued to help Phoenix. “It will establish that this so-called expert has severe conflicts of interest and his word cannot be trusted.” “At this point, there ain’t any damn one of us that doesn’t have a conflict of interest in this case, Nightie! You’ve had your own major conflict of interests from the word ‘go’, so you hardly have room to call the rest of us out on it!” Vinyl countered. Trixie’s gavel came down. “The defense’s objection is sustained. Everypony—rather, everyone here—has a conflict of interest to one degree or another, myself included. In a normal trial, under normal circumstances, on Equestria or Earth, these proceedings would have gone very differently. As it is, we will continue as we have. The witness does not have to answer the prosecution’s question!” The Nightmare grimaced at that, but smoothed her features out quickly. “Very well. Now, tell us, Starswirl; what exactly do you have to contribute to this case?” Starswirl waited a beat before responding. “An explanation for Mister Wright’s physical transformation that will destroy your claims and break your hold over Twilight Sparkle.” “Bold words. Let us see if they hold up…” she struck a note of bravado, though Wind Whistler thought she spotted a glimmer of concern appeared in the alicorn apparition’s slitted eyes. “By all means, then, testify as to your explanation!” “Oh, I can’t wait to hear this!” Vinyl said with a grin as Mia rejoined her behind the defense bench, Phoenix gathering his strength off to the side. —— Witness Testimony —— Love is Magic It is said that the mating aura is designed to entice a mate, but this is in fact a misnomer. Its purpose is to increase compatibility with a prospective partner; to ease the way between them for mating and conception. Let us not forget the purpose of love and sex is not simply to have fun, but to propagate the species and as such, a unicorn’s mating aura works towards that end. In the case of Phoenix Wright and Twilight Sparkle, the latter’s magic sought to accomplish that goal by giving him a set of stallion equipment so he might not just pleasure her more readily as a pony, but actually be able to sire her foals. Were we to test Phoenix Wright’s new equine attributes, I have no doubt we would find that they are quite capable of impregnating her the next time she enters heat. Regardless, this action was completely involuntary on Twilight Sparkle’s part, and she was no more conscious of it than she was her heart beating! As he finished, silence descended over the courtroom, broken only by a low murmuring from the audience, including Twilight’s friends. Twilight herself raised her head a bit as he spoke, as if something was suddenly clear to her, only to lower it again as the Nightmare once again fed additional dream power into her, dulling her senses once more. “That’s it?” the dream demon queen said, looking almost annoyed. “That is your grand revelation?” “That her magic acted on him involuntarily, seeking to make him a suitable sire for her future foals, yes,” Starswirl confirmed in equal annoyance. “And I fail to see why you look so relieved.” The Nightmare began to laugh, first low, then with increasing energy and volume. “I’m sorry…” she finally offered. “But your defense is so pitiful as to be barely worthy of note. With such a grand entrance and such grandiose words, I expected far more from you, Starswirl…” “If you find my testimony inadequate to the task, dear demon, I offer it up for cross-examination. And feel more than free to participate in it!” Starswirl stuck his nose in the air while in the stands behind him, Celestia and Luna conversed in low tones. “With your permission, Your Honor, the defense will cross-examine the witness,” Vinyl said. “That is, if you don’t mind, Mia? I’m kind of on a roll, here.” “By all means,” Mia nodded, stepping back slightly and sparing Phoenix another concerned glance. “At your leisure,” Trixie replied with a nod, feeling far more confident about Vinyl’s defense attorney abilities than she did before. —— Cross-Examination —— It is said that mating aura is designed to entice a mate, but this is in fact a misnomer. “I admit I’m only speaking for myself here, but I always thought that mating aura was the equivalent of a magical pheromone, one designed to entice and arouse a potential partner. In fact, I’ve heard no less than Twilight herself call it that?” “Then she is incorrect, and my former student has taught her very poorly on that subject… if she has taught her at all,” he said with a glance at Celestia, who cringed under his withering gaze like she was a mere schoolfilly again. “For if she ever paid attention in class, she would in fact know…” Its purpose is to increase compatibility with a prospective partner; to ease the way between them for mating and conception. “So you’re saying that’s what happened here? Sparkle’s mating aura was just trying to ‘ease the way’ between The Phoenix and Twilight by ‘increasing their compatibility’?” The unicorn DJ gained an odd smile, like she was suddenly considering the possibilities this leant. “In blunt terms, yes. But let us be clear on this. That is not a normal effect…” “Not normal, you say? Our so-called expert witness just undermined his entire testimony!” The Nightmare said with a grin. “… between ponies!” Starswirl cut her and Trixie off hard. “It is not a normal effect then for the very simple reason that ponies are already physically compatible and can freely conceive between them. So there is no need for a magically induced physical transformation! But between a pony and a human, conception is not possible unless…” he let the statement hang in the air unfinished, but nodded towards a still slumping Phoenix Wright, who was trying very hard to recover his wits after what had just happened to him. Vinyl rubbed her chin with a hoof in unconscious imitation of Phoenix. “I think I get it. You’re saying that basically… her mating aura was trying to make it so he could give her foals!” “Finally. Comprehension!” Starswirl rolled his eyes. “For as seems to be all too easily forgotten…” Let us not forget the purpose of love and sex is not simply to have fun, but to propagate the species and as such, a unicorn’s mating aura works towards that end. “And was Twilight Sparkle aware of this potential side effect?” Vinyl asked. Starswirl snorted. “Given Miss Sparkle’s propensity to derive all her learning from books of often questionable repute and my own former student’s neglect in explaining such matters, I think not. Even in this so-called enlightened day and age, there is very little scientific literature available on the subject of interspecies relationships; the phenomenon has simply been observed too rarely to be recorded.” “Observed too rarely because it’s nonexistent. Tell me, Miss Scratch: As a magically strong unicorn mare who has had a few interspecies partners of her own over the years, did you ever observe this effect on, say, your griffin mates?” The Nightmare asked with a sly grin. Vinyl frowned at that, considering the question. “Well, no… not that I remember…” The shout was thunderous, and did not come from either Mia or Vinyl. They both turned to their right where they beheld… Phoenix Wright having pulled himself to his feet again, standing and pointing a finger across the stage. “Oh. Welcome back, my future consort,” The Nightmare teased. “I hope our little demonstration was not too humiliating for you. After all, if I’m to keep my promise to Twilight and you are to properly satisfy your new queen, you and your new equipment must be kept in working order.” She grinned lasciviously, then considered him almost lazily. “Though I may yet offer up a few enhancements of my own…” Phoenix both paled and flushed, though the latter was more prominent to Mia’s eyes. “Ain’t gonna happen, Nightmare. And as for that question you asked... she wouldn’t necessarily know!” “Wouldn’t know?” everyone’s voice echoed at once as even Vinyl and Mia turned their heads to look at him in disbelief Phoenix’s face flushed further but he plunged ahead anyway. “Twilight and I made love several times where she was a pony before we finally noticed it was happening. The other times, it didn’t happen until, well… I entered her, so we didn’t see the transformation. And by the time we were done and I’d pulled back out, I was back to normal. So the same could have happened to Vinyl Scratch or any other unicorn!” “You didn’t notice? Are you seriously suggesting you couldn’t see what was right in front of your face and between your legs, Phoenix Wright?” The Nightmare looked both amused and annoyed by the question. Phoenix took on his goofy grin, to Mia’s relief as she realized that he’d now completely shaken off what The Nightmare had done to him earlier. “Well… my eyes were actually closed for most of it. And when they were open, they were on… her…” he offered as in the stands, both Twilight’s friends and Maya were flushed to various degrees, even Twilight’s cheeks as well as those belonging to some of the Bolt Knights had taken on a hint of color. Trixie’s gavel came down hard and repeatedly, her own cheeks warm. “Way too much information, Wrong! Witness! Is what he says plausible? Could her magic have only taken hold of him while he was… inside her?” she grimaced as she spoke, addressing Starswirl directly. Starswirl looked annoyed. “I am not a peasant pulled off the street, young ice elemental! So you will kindly call me by my proper title of Sage!” “She will call you what is appropriate to the situation!” snapped a voice, a blur of movement behind Starswirl resolving into the figure of Shadowmoon, who glared at the (relatively) ancient unicorn. “Mind your manners, sir. You are speaking to the judge of this trial, no matter how unusual it is. As such, you will refer to her as ‘your honor’. And while you are on the stand, you are a witness. I would advise you to remember that!” The earth pony magician punctuated this with a smoke bomb, disappearing back into the gallery. Starswirl coughed a little and waved his hat around to clear the smoke, his bells jingling before finally summoning a wind to disperse the vapors. Replacing his hat, he glared at the Bolt Knights and Red Talons. “And what are you lot doing, allowing something like that to happen? Aren’t you supposed to be acting the part of bailiffs?” The Bolt Knights snorted in unison. “Must you even ask, sir?” Firefly asked in a tone drier than some deserts. “Our purpose here is make sure the Nightmare faces justice tonight, not to protect you from your own petty insults. But even were this not the case, I would not intervene. You addressed his granddaughter by her abilities, not her current position after scolding her repeatedly about your proper title. Given that being an ice elemental has caused no end of torment for her over the years, ‘tis only natural that he would leap to her defense,” the warrior mare noted unsympathetically. “Aye,” Layan Kaval agreed. “Consider yourself lucky a smoke bomb is all you suffered, self-titled sage. For in our days, such an insult to honor would result in a duel!” “As if I couldn’t fight one!” Starswirl grumbled, but relented. “Very well. To answer Your Honor’s question, yes, it is plausible what the defense said,” he agreed. “Her mating magic is at its most intense within the confines of her body… which rutting her would certainly allow him to reach! It molded him then and served dual purpose by doing so—to allow him to sire her foals, and to more properly pleasure her!” “There are two major problems with that statement, old friend, both of which should be obvious to this court and opposing counsel…” The Nightmare began with a leer. “I am not your friend, demon!” Starswirl retorted. The Nightmare put on a pouting look. “Such ingratitude. And after all I did for you and Stygian?” she shook her head in mock sadness as there was yet another rippling in the dreamscape and three more figures disgorged at the entrance of the courtroom pit to reveal… “Spike!” Twilight’s friends all called out in surprise as the baby dragon looked around in confusion, the two thestrals he arrived with turning and bowing to Luna. “Great. And yet another member of the Twilight Sparkle peanut gallery arrives…” Trixie rubbed her eyes with a hoof. “I hate interruptions!” Starswirl groused as well. “Huh? Guys?” He glanced up to Twilight’s friends, then at Phoenix at the defense bench, who was just as surprised to see the scribe as he was him. “Phoenix Wright? What’s going on? These guys said Twilight was in trouble…” he noted, then locked onto Twilight sitting forlornly in the defendant’s seat. “Well. It would appear the least of my quarry’s friends has arrived to join the proceedings,” The Nightmare rolled her eyes as she spoke, causing Spike to look towards her and start. “How lovely, if only for yet one more witness to my triumph.” “Nightmare Moon!” he recognized, stumbling back in shock, falling on his backside. “How is she here? What’s going on?” he looked around frantically, not reassured by either Trixie in the judge’s seat or the ancient griffin and pony warriors all around him, only one of which he recognized. “Captain Firefly? But how can you be…” “Greetings, young drake,” she bowed to him. “I know you have questions, but we have little time for answers. Just know for now that The Nightmare seeks a new host in your mistress, and should she succeed, both Equestria and the human world are at grave risk. She is attempting to possess Twilight by convincing her she is guilty of heinous crimes, and should she succeed, all is lost.” “She’s what?” Spike fell openmouthed. “No! She can’t! Twilight! Twilight!” he began to rush towards her only to be repelled by the Nightmare’s power, though once again Twilight’s slumped head came up fractionally at his voice. Thwarted, he rounded on The Nightmare. “Hey! You let her go!” To his credit, he charged across the pit at her breathing green fire, though his attempt at intimidation only seemed to amuse the alicorn apparition, who considered him lazily. “Well, then, young dragon. Such spirit you have. You might yet make a fine familiar once me and your mistress are joined, but I fear we will have to do something about that scrawny form and independent streak you seem to have. Fear not, a little old-fashioned greed should do wonders for your body and disposition!” she closed her eyes and grinned. “Oh yeah? Think I’ll ever help you? Forget it!” he made to rush her, only to be plucked out of the pit by a new unicorn aura. “No, Spiky-wikey!” Rarity called to him, sweeping him up in her magic and back towards her, shielding him protectively. “You dear, brave dragon, you mustn’t try to challenge her or interfere.” “But we have to do something!” He insisted, tears in her eyes as Maya stared at him, suddenly reminded uncomfortably of how much Twilight meant to her friends. “We are, partner. Just by bein’ here,” Applejack answered, putting a reassuring hoof on his shoulder. “We can’t help the trial, but we can dang well sure let Twi know her friends are here. Nightmare can’t hide us from her; if she hears us, she’ll remember us… and try to come back to us.” “Believe whatever you like, my little ponies. But back to the matter at hoof… I believe there were a pair of problems with the witness’s latest statement,” she recalled. “We’ll save the more embarrassing one for later, but for now, let us concentrate on one simple contradiction in your words, so-called Sage. You said earlier that the purpose of mating aura was to enable the conception of foals. I grant that is a perfectly reasonable statement. But then you just turned around and said it was to allow her more pleasure? So which is it, you worthless wizard? Is it for progeny or pleasure?” she took on a tut-tutting tone that reminded Phoenix of Franziska again. This time, Vinyl fired in with another blast of bass that left a chord warbling in the air. “I think it’s safe to say the two goals ain’t mutually exclusive, Nightie…” she said in a very mild tone. “Indeed,” Starswirl rolled his eyes yet again. “We mate for both progeny and pleasure. And where pleasure exists, the chances for progeny increases for the simple reason that we will want to mate more! That hardly requires magic or an arcane theorist to explain!” “Agreed!” Trixie dismissed the objection with a rap of her gavel. “One down. And the other issue…?” she prompted and mentally braced for impact, having already spotted the second problem herself. Much as I wish I HADN’T! she internally grimaced, certain she was never going to get the picture of Wrong with stallion equipment out of her head. The Nightmare’s grin got more pronounced. “The other problem, Your Honor, should be obvious to anyone with a pair of eyes. I’m sure all present noticed that Mister Wright’s new… equipment was considerably larger than the pony norm?” she asked with a grin while Applejack explained in blunt terms to Spike what she was talking about, causing the baby dragon to blush. “That strongly suggests that Miss Sparkle’s magic did do a little more than simply ponify his male attributes, and if what our witness says is true, that means she had to do so consciously and against his express wishes. If this court wishes, I will be more than happy to offer said attributes up for inspection again.” She turned her mating aura back on. “NO!” Phoenix, Maya and Trixie all shouted at the same time, Phoenix’s hands going involuntarily to shield himself as he felt unwelcome excitement take hold again. But it was mercifully short-lived as Trixie immediately moved to block the alicorn apparition’s aura with her own… and succeeded, to Phoenix’s great relief, a sudden burst of cold air around him generated by the showmare helping his sudden arousal to just as quickly subside. “Oh, you’re no fun,” The Nightmare pouted again, but didn’t make an effort to push past Trixie’s power. “I’m sorry to disappoint our pathetic prosecutor, but that argument doesn’t fly either, Nightmare!” This time, Starswirl didn’t wait for an objection before speaking up. “The simplest explanation for the fact that Phoenix Wright’s new equine equipment is larger than normal is the fact that even his human equipment was oversized, and thus Miss Sparkle’s mating aura simply turned it into its proportional equine equivalent. No more and no less.” Vinyl’s face lit up as she realized something. “So for argument’s sake, let’s say she turned her mating aura on him while they were both human—which I know firsthoof they’ve done,” she grinned at Phoenix, sitting back and making some kneading motions with her hooves, causing both him and Maya to blush anew. “So would there be a physical transformation then?” “No. Because in that example, there is no need for one,” he confirmed. “In such a case, they are already compatible and he could sire her foals whenever her human body is able to conceive. Perchance if he was undersized it might have made him bigger as a means to facilitate more successful mating. But again, this is not something Twilight Sparkle did consciously… unlike some certain former students of mine, who seem to have no qualms about it!” he gave another pointed look into the gallery, where Celestia in particular blushed. “They didn’t like studying or completing my assignments, but they quickly mastered every mating and enhancement spell there was!” “Oh come now, former teacher. You’re not still mad about me and Luna trying out a couple such spells on you, are you?” Celestia closed her eyes and grinned. “You were the talk of the palace for the next several days and, as I recall, in very high demand with the court mares!” Her grin got broader. “Verily!” Luna added with a grin of her own, the two falling quickly back into a long-forgotten schoolfilly mode neither Twilight nor any living pony had ever seen them in. “We dubbed thee Starswirl the swollen after that! ‘Tis unfortunate that title did not take as well as the first…” For the first time, the unicorn spirit blushed as laughter erupted from living and departed spirits alike. “Absolutely incorrigible…” was the only thing he could immediately say. “But you know you love us!” Celestia said with a smile in the voice of the impish teen she was then. Starswirl rubbed the side of his head with a hoof. “Methinks I must, or after all you two put me through, ‘tis certain I would have killed you both!” Trixie gavel-ed the proceedings back to order over the fresh roar of laughter that erupted. “Trixie finds this explanation adequate if rather stomach-turning. Is the prosecution satisfied?” To little surprise, The Nightmare even twisted that question into something far less innocent. “Satisfied? Never. I fear you’re going to be quite busy before too long, Phoenix Wright…” she gave him a knowing leer. “But as to the question at hoof… the prosecution feels that this statement is as yet unproven, Your Honor. After all, we have seen his pony equipment, not his human version. If we are to establish the veracity of the witness’s statement, we must see the latter as well…” “NO!” Phoenix, Maya and Trixie all shouted again as Mia simply crossed her arms and shook her head in disgust. Music: “Scaretale (Instrumental Ver.)” by Nightwish The Nightmare’s grin only increased at their reaction. “I’m afraid the prosecution must insist on hard proof, Your Honor. So come now, Phoenix Wright. Don’t be shy. But since I’m well aware you’ll need to be aroused by a human in order to see such things, I will be more than happy to help you…” she said with a toothy grin as her horn glowed again but this time, she transformed into a very familiar human, punctuating her sudden appearance with the sharp crack of a whip… One that caused Phoenix to go pale. “And just who the hay is that supposed to be?” Trixie stared at the newcomer in some interest while Mia and Maya’s lips curled. “Franziska…” he gulped as he beheld the daughter of the legendary Manfred von Karma for the second time in several days, remembering again how the eighteen-year old prosecuting prodigy had given him all he could handle and more in the course of two trials, her wit and whip leaving its mark on his body and at times, his very psyche. The Nightmare curtsied in her new guise. “Franziska von Karma at your service, Your Honor,” she replied in Franziska’s voice. “Or at least, a faithful recreation from Phoenix Wright’s own memories.” Trixie blinked as she remembered something. “Wait… she’s the prosecutor Wrong said beats him with a whip when he steps out of line?” she asked, now studying The Nightmare’s new form with keen interest. “Ah, he has mentioned me? I am indeed. Phoenix Wright!” she then shouted and pointed across the pit, brandishing her whip menacingly. “This time I will defeat you!” She cracked her whip a second time an inch from Phoenix’s nose, not noticing Twilight taking on an angry expression. “I told you not… to… touch him!” she suddenly snarled, her eyes glowing red and sending what amounted to a magical feedback shock through the Nightmare’s power tendrils, jolting the dream demon hard and disrupting her guise, causing her eyes to go slitted again for a moment. “Twilight!” everyone shouted at once, hoping she was breaking free, but though startled and slightly singed, the Nightmare reasserted her control before Twilight could loosen it further. She dulled her quarry’s senses as much as she could, using so much magic to maintain power over her prey her shield was almost completely retracted. “Oh. It would seem they’ve met already. No matter then… if I cannot use her whip to arouse him, then perhaps this will do…” she shifted tactics and took a very provocative pose, sitting on the prosecutor’s bench and crossing her legs as she began pulling the bow at the top of her blouse and unhooking the large buttons over her midsection, causing Phoenix to swallow as despite all, his mind began to suddenly and vividly fantasize about the real Franziska acting this way. Sensing she was having an effect on him, The Nightmare pushed things further. “You did what no man ever has—you beat me in a court of law, Phoenix Wright! And to the victor, goes the spoils…” she spoke in a sultry voice that was both Franziska’s voice and not, performing a striptease before him. Despite his rigid expression, Phoenix’s couldn’t look away; his insides began to churn and he did feel an appreciative twinge in his loins despite his disgust at her actions. I will never, EVER see Franny the same way again! “For all my years and study, I don’t think I will ever understand human sexuality…” Starswirl sighed while in the stands, Twilight’s friends wore expressions ranging from confusion to outright distaste, Rarity covering Spike’s eyes with a materialized mask. “Nothing? Well, then as you seem to favor younger girls, perhaps this, then…” her features morphed again and this time she turned to… Maya! “What?!? HEY!!!!!” Maya shouted from the stands, but the Nightmare ignored her and various shouts of protest, taking a slow walk towards Phoenix. “The truth is, Vinyl was right. I do want you, Nick…” she told him in a very demure voice in a perfect imitation of Maya that made his guts outright clench, doubly so when she began pulling the sash on her kimono with exaggerated slowness, trying with all his might to will his increasingly insistent excitement back to bay. She’s my friend… my assistant and Mia’s SISTER! She’s not… she can’t be… he thought as he realized that even though they were in the dream realm, his mouth had gone dry. “Stop it! Stop it!” Maya called as The Nightmare began to completely disrobe before Phoenix, Nick’s reaction not lost on her or anyone else. But before the process could be completed, a wave of angelic energy knocked the entity back out of Maya’s form, throwing her hard back against the prosecutor’s bench. “That will do, Nightmare,” Mia’s arms were crossed and her expression lethal, her wings flared like an angry pegasus. “We do not have to see Maya or Phoenix naked to answer this question, if you’ll just check again the notes Twilight took of her observations of Phoenix and Fluttershy.” “Her notes?” Trixie frantically grasped at the lifeline, willing the notes scroll Rarity had produced back into existence. “Indeed. Read through them, Your Honor. Look for the diagram. What does is say is Phoenix’s length?” Mia prompted. The showmare read through the document again in distaste but to her great relief, could answer. “7.42 inches.” “I seem to recall that Twilight herself said that when we were watching through Rarity’s memories as well.” Mia couldn’t resist giving Phoenix a wink. “Twilight Sparkle’s a lucky mare, then, given normal human size is around six inches. So he is significantly larger than average, and the witness’s argument holds—he has a larger stallionhood, for lack of a better term, because he has a larger manhood. And that, Your Honor, is that.” She moved a lock of hair aside as she spoke, her voice and expression smug. “Sold! Objection overruled!” Trixie brought her gavel down with relief, while the Nightmare simply shrugged, leaving Phoenix wondering why she still seemed so unconcerned. Especially since Twilight seems to be perking up again… he quickly noted, trying to use thoughts of her to drive away stubbornly persistent fantasies of Franziska and Maya. He glanced at the latter only briefly, only to find her looking back, causing both to quickly look away. “Ahem. May we continue now?” Starswirl asked impatiently. “I’ve had quite enough of such interruptions!” “Be our pleasure…” a grinning Vinyl replied for all of them. In the case of Phoenix Wright and Twilight Sparkle, the latter’s magic sought to accomplish that goal by giving him a set of stallion equipment so he might not just pleasure her more readily as a pony, but actually be able to sire her foals. This time the call came from Phoenix. “As much as I hate to bring this up… there’s still an unanswered question here!” he pointed at Starswirl. “If you’re right and her mating magic was only acting on me like that when I… entered her…” he slumped at the snickers he heard from both the dream guard and the mingled pony and griffin spirits, “Then why did my transformation not go away immediately after I withdrew that last time?” “Yes, by all means, please answer why, so-called Sage!” The Nightmare needled. This time, he spared the Nightmare but a glance, keeping his attention on Phoenix. “Suspicious, aren’t you? The answer to that is simple, attorney—you’re absorbing progressively more of Twilight’s magic, and thus, it both takes progressively less additional magic to accomplish the same goal, and its effects last progressively longer over time,” he said evenly. “I’m… what?” Phoenix felt a moment of panic. “Absorbing her magic?” he resisted the urge to pat himself down. “Oh, don’t act like it’s a disease, human! You should be both honored and grateful for it having selected you like this. But since you seem to still have doubts, allow me to enlighten you…” his horn glowed and his magic suddenly rearranged the courtroom, producing what looked like an ancient classroom/laboratory replete with arcane scrolls and diagrams combined with telescopes and potion-making equipment, all surrounding an ornate if rather cluttered desk. “Attention!” He slapped a materialized instructor crop down on his desk as he stood in front of it and unrolled a large papyrus scroll against an easel, the sharp crack of the crop and snap of his voice instantly bringing Celestia and Luna to rapt attention, making them sit bolt upright in their seats like they were fillies again. “Magical theory 101 is now in session! And your instructor expects your full and undivided attention during it!” He pinned The Nightmare and Phoenix with a glare in turn, the latter deciding quickly it would be best to keep quiet for the duration. “First, let us see how much my former students actually remember. Tia! Luna!” he called to them. “Stop passing notes and pay attention for once! What was the first rule I ever taught you about magic? I should hope you remember for as many times as I made you recite it!” The Celestial sisters looked at each other for a moment before answering. “Magic ‘tis a living force. Above all else, it seeketh expression and to grow in scope and power; to spread itself into realms it doth not already exist,” they recited as one. “Correct. I must admit to being pleasantly surprised that you recall it,” he groused, but wrote their response on the papyrus sheet in very elegant script. “It is indeed a living force. And just as nature abhors a vacuum, so does magic, Mister Wright. Both you and your world are magic-poor but not lacking of it entirely. That idiot assistant of yours with her so-called Kurain technique is evidence enough of that!” “Hey!” Maya shouted again, but a grinning Trixie cut her off with another gavel rap, slapping another soundproof cylinder around her. “Her so-called mystical power is simply an alternate form of magic, related to it in the same way that electricity and magnetism are closely intertwined. They are, in other words, just different expressions of the same force, or if you prefer, different branches of it. And the greater force, you ask? Call it Harmony if you must, but the point is, it is present in your world as well, and has a will and purpose all its own.” “You truly expect us to believe such a ridiculous statement?” The Nightmare cackled. “Are you as senile now as you were upon your death, old stallion? It would appear that your time in the Summerlands has addled your once mighty mind. There is no greater will to this world or any other but the work of individual agents like myself or Ms. Fey, seeking to orchestrate events to our ends. There is no good or evil, only power and those too weak to seek it!” she proclaimed, making Maya’s eyes go wide. “That is a lie, and you know it, Nightmare!” an angelic Mia glared, crossing her arms and spreading her wings wide for emphasis. “The very fact that we stand on opposite sides of this courtroom is evidence enough of that!” “Is it?” she closed her eyes and smiled. “You speak of magic as if it has plan and purpose, Starswirl. The truth is, it has none but to spread itself like a cancer, filling voids it was not present in before. One such void, it would seem, was Phoenix Wright, and he looks hardly happy to have it. And the conduit it used for that purpose… was Twilight Sparkle, infecting him through her. Should he stay with her, it would continue to do so, and who knows then what it might do to him?” She let the implications hang in the air for a few seconds, long enough for a trickle of sweat to appear on Phoenix’s neck. “I understand, of course, that you see him as little more than a lab specimen to be studied, but as he is given neither his consent nor offered any choice in the matter, he can hardly be called anything but a victim to its deprivations. In truth, he has every reason to be afraid of it, and to save himself from further effects by abandoning this gross perversion of a so-called relationship they have!” she proclaimed, causing tears to start rolling down Twilight’s cheeks. Phoenix felt a chill in his heart at her words, all his fears suddenly struck home. And yet… “I am afraid of it…” he admitted, his fists clenching. “In the same sense that I fear everything I don’t understand. Life and death. Change. A destiny I sense but don’t yet see. A feeling of not being in control, like decisions are being made for me…” he spoke slowly, trying to grasp something that still seemed just out of reach, Mia staring at him, silently urging him on. “But that is where you are wrong, Phoenix Wright,” Starswirl’s voice softened slightly, though was still stern. “For there is the second lesson to learn: that despite what she may say, magic is not indiscriminate. It seeks proper hosts for itself that can wield and express it, and here it found one in you.” The second lesson wrote itself down on the mounted piece of papyrus. “And what purpose is that, prey tell?” The Nightmare asked. “A perversion of his body and hostile takeover of his very spirit?” Phoenix’s cry rose above the shouts of outrage. “You’ve got some nerve saying that, when that’s exactly what you’re trying to do to Twilight!” he pointed an accusing finger at her. The Nightmare was completely unrepentant. “Perhaps. But at least I am up front about my intentions, Phoenix Wright. Can you say the same about this so called magical, mystical force?” she leaned over her bench to ask him, causing his expression to drop. “…which brings me to the third part of my lesson, and adds another nail in your coffin, Nightmare!” Starswirl sneered, his quill pen beginning to scratch on the papyrus again. “Magic only acts through willing hosts who can wield it properly and for its intended purpose!” he announced triumphantly. “That is exactly what happened to Miss Fey up there whether she wishes to admit it or not. She absorbed Twilight Sparkle’s mating magic so readily because she had the same intent and desire as her, and thus could wield magic created for the purpose of mating with Phoenix Wright to that end,” he pronounced with a contemptuous glance at her, causing Maya to flinch and flush. “The magic she absorbed was created for the purpose of making love to Phoenix Wright, and was attracted to that so-called mystic’s deep-seated if deeply buried desires to do the same. In short, it would not have affected her any differently than the rest of the people at that dance party unless she had the exact same desires as Twilight Sparkle!” she said as Celestia nodded in silent agreement and Maya’s jaw fell open. “Hey! You listening up there, fillyfriend?” Vinyl called to her. “That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you the whole time!” she added, to which Maya could only clutch her head again. Phoenix resisted the impulse to do so himself. Twilight… Fluttershy… and now MAYA? He was at a loss. Let’s just deal with one crisis at a time, okay…? “And this information saves Twilight Sparkle… how, exactly?” The Nightmare was still unimpressed. “All you have proven is that Twilight’s magic affected Maya Fey against her will, just as it did Phoenix Wright!” “Yeah!” Maya had finally figured out she could remove any containment given her with a simple thought, but her success was short lived as Starswirl slapped a fresh cone of silence around her, one that she could not remove. “Be quiet, girl. I am not yet done,” he told her as his quill began to write again. “The corollary to this final point, which The Nightmare is so carefully trying deflect attention from, is that magic responds and makes use of one’s true heart and desires, not the surface thoughts or abject denial that one may mask them with!” He waited until the line had finished writing before continuing. “So just as Twilight’s mating magic found Maya Fey able to wield it for the admittedly shallow purposes of the flesh, it found you, Phoenix Wright, for another, if much deeper one. A purpose that is both incredibly simple, yet potentially very far-reaching. A purpose that, much as it may pain me to say, my own former student sensed and sought to nurture even before I did!” he said with a glance up at a very pleased-looking Celestia who was grinning and nodding as he spoke. His quill finished writing and replaced itself in its ink jar as the letters of his script suddenly glowed bright against the papyrus they were written on. “So, Phoenix Wright… study this lesson in full, and then ignore The Nightmare and answer from your heart. The question here is less what Twilight’s magic or magic in general has done to you… as what you are doing for it…?” he finished, stepping away from the easel. “And the answer, I leave as an exercise to the student.” “I…” Phoenix felt the pieces starting to snap into place, the fog of his uncertainty and worries starting to clear, the truth starting to shine brightly through cracks in his fears just as the letters of scripts were glowing. Not what it’s doing to me… what am I doing for it… for HER? he repeated the question to himself, staring at the four lines written on the papyrus before him. Music: “Holding Out For A Hero” by Bonnie Tyler As he had done so often before, he tried to step outside of the box he was in and look at the case from a new angle, and was surprised by what he found. “I’ve been selfish,” he realized with a downcast look, bowing his head and closing his eyes. “All this time I’ve been thinking only of myself, and not of her. She bent over backwards for me, meeting me more than halfway by coming to Earth and taking human form. It was heady and scary what I was feeling when I was with her, so intense I couldn’t control it and leaving me wondering how much of it was me and how much of it was her…” his fists clenched at his sides for a moment before relaxing as Mia stared at him intently, silently urging him on. “And yet, as I think about it now… as much as I worried this wasn’t real, it wasn’t that I feared. It was her magic. All magic…” he finally admitted. “People fear what they don’t understand, and ultimately I’m no different. I feared what it could do to me, that I had no say in it and it was forcing this on me against my will. “And maybe that’s where my overreaction came from,” he shook his head at the realization. “All the sudden, it wasn’t my choice what was happening to me, and I lashed out at the only source I could—Twilight herself. But it wasn’t fair to her. I know in my heart she’d never hurt me and I know now that she didn’t lie to me or deliberately break her promise. I’m not sure how I feel about the idea that magic or harmony or whatever has a plan for me, but maybe that’s less the point than something Mia herself told me earlier—that every relationship is messy in one form or another, requiring sacrifice and to meet halfway. After all, this is love, and when is love ever predictable?” he asked rhetorically, to which Mia closed her eyes and nodded, Twilight’s head coming up fractionally at his words as well. “Love?” The Nightmare mimicked in mocking tones, though there was also an undercurrent of anger in her voice. “Spare me such ridiculous sentiments, Phoenix Wright. What has happened to you was not love; it was a magically induced infatuation aided and abetted by a force that seeks to spread itself regardless of the wishes of those it uses. You are nothing more than a convenient conduit to its ends, and this so-called love will consume you if you let it… just as I believe it did once before?” she asked with a knowing grin, and Phoenix flinched. “No…” Phoenix said finally, the rest of the courtroom deathly silent. “Not like before…” “Deny it all you wish, Phoenix Wright. But the truth of the matter is, you are no more equipped to handle this relationship than your last… even if it was real.” She drove the knife deeper into him. “You should be thankful, for I am in fact doing you a great favor by taking away this magical mockery of a relationship from you and replacing it with one you will find far more rewarding… for as my former host can attest, I can be very generous to those who serve me well.” “No you won’t…” he said quietly, his soft voice belying the fists suddenly clenched at his sides. “Because I get it now, Nightmare. Get what Mia was trying to tell me, and now what Starswirl has now taught me with this lesson,” he raised his eyes to meet hers. “I get now that her magic would not have latched onto me any more than it would have Maya if Twilight’s feelings towards me weren’t mutual. That love is magic no less than friendship, and in some ways more. That if I didn’t feel towards her as she did towards me, none of what we shared or experienced would have been possible, magic or no. All this time, I’ve been worried that her magic caused it, but the truth…” his eyes began to glimmer. “The truth is that her magic just worked to enhance what was already there between us, a seed that was planted in Equestria and ready to grow!” he pointed across the pit at the Nightmare again, the fervor in his words causing Twilight’s head to come up further. “Then you are every bit the fool I initially took you for, Phoenix Wright,” The Nightmare’s lip curled. “I could offer you everything, give you a life filled with your dream lovers. Twilight… Fluttershy… von Karma… young Maya… or if you favor the more mature, perhaps even your own mentor, if you like?” She took Mia’s form. “So how about it, Phoenix? Care to show me how much you’ve learned?” She asked in Mia’s voice, showing even more cleavage than normal. Phoenix stared at her again, then closed his eyes and shook his head. “Franziska would tell me I am a fool…” he agreed, letting out a sharp exhale of breath. “And she’d be right. Fool for believing you, fool for putting my own fears ahead of Twilight’s and thinking only of myself. Fool for not seeing what was right in front of my face—that Twilight loves me and would never hurt me; that her magic only sought to enhance the feelings we already had for each other. And to what end, you ask? To the creation of friendship, of love, of life itself…” his face suddenly lit up as the answer crystallized in his head. “To the creation of more magic! New magic!” he suddenly realized. “That’s what all this is about! Yes, it’s about us, and yet it’s far bigger than us! Her magic acted on me not simply to increase our passion or pleasure, but produce a progeny that will span both worlds! An offspring of not just two different species, but two different forms of magic!” he said in excited tones, the words now coming quickly. “By uniting us, it’s uniting them, and thus helping to make our two worlds one! And whether it’s God or harmony or whatever you want to call it, it didn’t choose us so much as it found us for that purpose, because what we felt for each other… was already there and real!” he slammed both his fists on the rail before him, feeling himself shaking with the revelation, knowing in his heart it was The Truth. Starswirl clopped his hooves together in genuine applause, causing the rest of the ethereal gallery to do the same, clapping hands of humans combining with the clopping hooves of ponies and the raucous calls of the griffins. “At last. A student who listens! If only my prior ones were so attentive!” he couldn’t resist another dig at the two princesses, who chuckled to themselves but joined in the acclaim themselves. “You lose, Nightmare! You can’t tempt me, and you can’t make me doubt this any longer. I love Twilight Sparkle! And I willingly accept that love and all it entails, including and especially her magic! She wouldn’t be the same pony without it, and that’s the pony I fell in love with!” he stood tall and straight, pointing his finger at her while she listened with a disgusted expression, Twilight’s eyes glimmering and lip trembling as she spoke, only the barest tips of the Nightmare’s tendrils remaining inside her as Phoenix’s words reached her as well. “Woo-hoo! You tell ‘er, partner!” Applejack shouted from the stands, twirling her stetson over her head as Fluttershy listened with her eyes glimmering and Rarity outright cried, her eyeshadow running as she clutched Spike to her. “Way to go, Nix!” Even Rainbow Dash looked satisfied at the outcome of events, giving Phoenix an approving nod, exchanging a high-hoof with Pinkie Pie, who was now sitting on her party cannon though she didn’t fire it yet. “So, to summarize, Your Honor…” Mia placed her hands on Vinyl’s shoulders and Phoenix’s arm, indicating she wanted to strike the finishing blow herself. “Twilight Sparkle never raped Phoenix Wright, either on earth or in Equestria. She did not make him fall in love against his will, nor did she deliberately transform him; it was merely her magic and mating aura acting automatically upon him for purposes of procreation and the spreading of friendship and magic. Said magic neither hurt him, nor induced him or Maya to feel anything they did not already have… whether or not my younger sister can yet accept it,” she said, sparing a now-tearful Maya a glance. “As the defense submits all the prosecution’s claims have been disproven, we move for an immediate not guilty verdict on all counts!” “Time to end this, Trixie!” Vinyl agreed, though then her expression dropped fractionally. “I’ll finish dealing with Maya later…” “That will be my pleasure!” Trixie agreed, letting the lack of proper title drop this time, relieved that the worst would not come to pass. “Then on the matter of the ponies-er, people versus Twilight Sparkle, this court renders a verdict of—” The Nightmare’s laughter following her interjection was low and long, as though enjoying a rather dark joke. “Ah, you poor, pathetic foals. You think you’ve won? Yes, you may have taken this round, but in the end, it gains you nothing.” “What the hay are you on about?” Vinyl asked, bewildered. “You’ve got nothing left, Nightie! No charges left to pin on Twilight, and with your army gone, no backup coming to help you!” “Your case is broken and with it, your hold on Twilight!” Phoenix agreed, pointing a triumphant finger at her. “I can tell just by looking at her she’s almost free of your influence now. And soon as the verdict is read, she’ll expel you completely!” The Nightmare merely continued to chuckle. “You still don’t get it, do you, Phoenix Wright? This entire trial was meant to serve one purpose; to break Twilight Sparkle’s will and allow me to claim her. And while that may not have turned out as planned, I will say only this in closing: she will be mine, this whole ordeal notwithstanding.” “A bold claim, demon,” Firefly challenged with a sneer. “What arrogance leads you to such a conclusion?” “Not arrogance, my dear departed Captain, but the truth,” the Nightmare replied easily. “And the truth is simply this: I am the reason Twilight is attracted to Phoenix in the first place.” she grinned and bared her teeth. There was a brief uproar at this, punctuated by Trixie’s gavel slamming repeatedly. “What are you talking about?” she asked, once the hubbub had died down. “I meant exactly what I said, Your so-called Honor. That Twilight Sparkle’s feelings for Phoenix Wright were manufactured solely by me, for the purpose of making her vulnerable to my possession.” The demon in alicorn’s clothing looked very smug. “In other words, were it not for me, she would have no attraction to him at all.” Starswirl gave a snort at that. “Were you not paying attention, Nightmare? Neither her magic nor mating aura would have done what it did to Phoenix Wright unless they were well and truly in love with each other!” “And that, you ancient and overstated fossil, is where you’re wrong. From what you’ve said, the mating magic acts based upon the feelings and desires of the host, and I grant that is true. However, at no point did you say that the magic is cognizant enough to determine if those feelings are genuine… or artificially induced by a second source.” Her toothy grin got broader as Starswirl’s face fell at the realization. “My dream magic is not so limited by what you describe; through the power of dreams I am more than capable of manipulating minds and emotions to my own end, convincing my victims that love exists where there is none.” Starswirl’s wasn’t the only dispirited face in the crowd; several of Twilight’s friends looked nervous or despairing as well. “Uh, Pinkie, why’s that such a big deal?” Spike asked, bewildered. “I mean, yeah, it’s not nice to know her feelings have been fake all along, but…” “Because, Spike,” Pinkie said, her voice as flat as her mane and tail were becoming, “knowing that her feelings towards Feenie are fake will cause Twilight to doubt her own heart. And that kind of doubt is what draws dream demons like the Nightmare in the first place.” “And the Nightmare can use that doubt to hide away within Twilight, to lay claim to her at a later date, beyond the reach of the Princesses,” Wind Whistler elaborated, her face contorted in a furious grimace. Spike grimaced himself at that, and turned towards Mia. “You’re some kind of super-spirit, right? Can’t you do anything…?” Mia looked grave. “As an angel, yes, I could expel the Nightmare from Twilight’s psyche through pure spiritual force. Luna could do the same with her power. However, for either of us to attempt such an intervention would cause irreparable harm to Twilight, and make things worse than they are now.” “Damned if we do, damned if we don’t,” Firefly swore. “Her strategy has more layers than Prelate Gaius’ Equestrian invasion plan. Methinks she’s played us all for foals. The trial was but a shadow play to obtain her goal, but she had this in store the entire time.” The Nightmare chuckled. “Correct, my dear little ponies.” She turned towards Trixie. “Now, I do believe this trial has gone on long enough. Go ahead and render your verdict, Trixie Lulamoon. I commend you for a superbly fought trial, Ms. Fey. You and your friends have won this battle… for all the good it does you.” She let off another chuckle. “If only you could disprove my claim. Unfortunately for you, it’s impossible to prove matters of the heart!” The call startled everyone present into silence, including the Nightmare, as the one who called out was the sole male behind the defense bench. “Nick…?” Maya asked, bewildered. “Nightmare, your name is well earned,” Phoenix said, not a trace of fear or doubt in his voice, facing her calmly. “You’ve certainly caused enough trouble tonight to give anyone nightmares for a lifetime. But it all ends here. Unfortunately for you, I can, in fact, prove that your claim is false!” The Nightmare looked only briefly annoyed. “Please, Phoenix Wright. This trial is over. Don’t make things worse for yourself by resorting to bluffs.” She looked at Trixie. “Now, your verdict…?” “Your Honor, as your verdict has not yet been rendered, I have the right to refute the prosecution’s claims! And even if you had passed judgement, I could still challenge it in light of last-second testimony or evidence! Remember what happened in Rainbow Dash’s trial?” Phoenix reminded the showmare. Trixie, who’d been wavering in indecision, nodded with a noticeable sense of relief. “The defense has a valid point, Nightmare. You made the statement, and the defense is well within their rights to challenge you on it. Objection sustained.” The Nightmare looked somewhat pole-axed for a moment, but Phoenix didn’t give her time to recover. “Thank you for your indulgence, Your Honor.” “Don’t thank me yet, Wrong. Like it or not, she also had a point; everything else in this trial has already been covered. Therefore, legally, I can only give you one chance to disprove her claims. You’d best make it count!” “One chance is all I need, Your Honor,” Phoenix said with a nod. It’s all coming to an end… and for what she’s put both Twilight and me through, I swear I’ll strike the finishing blow MYSELF!