//------------------------------// // Part 40 - A Mythological Witness // Story: Phoenix Wright - Turnabout Storm! // by Firesight //------------------------------// Ponyville District Court Courtroom No.2 June 11th, 10:35 AM Phoenix could hear a low undercurrent of conversation as he entered the courtroom and walked to the defense stall, ponies talking about the trial and other topics while Rainbow Dash took her place in the defendant’s seat. She made no effort to resist as the unicorn bailiffs slapped wing and hoof restraints on her again, looking impatient for the proceedings to begin. Glancing around the full gallery, Phoenix saw Spike sitting with Applejack and a put-to-rights Rarity, her appearance restored to its usual elegant state though her retouched makeup couldn’t quite hide the tired bags under her eyes. He caught her gaze and gave her a nod of acknowledgment and friendly smile; she gave him a wink and blew him a kiss in response, to Spike’s apparent disapproval. His cheeks warmed at that. Always good to have the favor of a lovely lady! he couldn’t help but think, idly wondering what the fashion-loving mare would think of the suit Miles Edgeworth always wore—if she likes mine, she’d probably LOVE his! Phoenix was also surprised to see many of his new gym friends in the audience as well, taking up one of the gallery rows behind the prosecutor’s bench, giving him a wave. Phoenix smiled as he waved back—nice to have my own cheering section for a change! But his grin quickly disappeared as he spotted Sonata in the upper row. She did not speak or react visibly to his gaze as he locked eyes with her, but Phoenix heard her renewed warning to not bring up the blackmail scheme loud and clear. After another minute passed, the earth pony head bailiff instructed everypony to rise as The Judge entered, taking his seat behind the bench and calling court to order with a bang of his gavel. He looked rather tired to Phoenix’s eyes, and even in some pain judging by his slightly unfocused eyes. So what were YOU doing last night, Your Honor? Phoenix wasn’t sure he wanted to know, thinking The Judge almost looked hung over. “Court will now reconvene from yesterday’s suspension. My apologies to all present for the delay, but it was… unavoidable.” The Judge cleared his throat as he spoke, rubbing his temple lightly as he checked his notes. “Getting back to the case at hand… the trial was suspended due to the presence of an unidentified feather at the scene that possibly pointed to involvement by one of the defendant’s friends. Was the prosecution able to determine where the feather came from?” he asked, turning to Trixie and then to Phoenix. As he looked at the opposing sides, The Judge couldn’t help but reflect it was probably the last time he would see a Ponyville courtroom when the trial was at its end. He found himself already regretting that he would soon be leaving Equestria, wondering if they’d at least allow him to take a keg of that cider he’d enjoyed a little too much the previous night home with him. But instead of answering The Judge’s question, Trixie addressed Phoenix. “So where’s Twilight, Mister Wrong? Did she run off when she realized letting you defend again is a grave mistake?” the mare magician needled again, but this time, Phoenix was unmoved by it. “No. She has faith in me and trusts me to successfully defend Rainbow on my own,” an unfazed Phoenix replied, not rising to the bait. The biggest blunder I made yesterday was letting you get to me, Trixie, and making the trial more about beating you than proving my client innocent. I won’t make that mistake again! Trixie tilted her chin up, taking on a haughty pose. “Oh? So why isn’t she here, then? Maybe she’d rather not see your disgraceful attempt at a defense?” she mocked. Instead of answering, Phoenix calmly turned to The Judge. “I believe His Honor asked a question. Can you please answer it, Trixie?” The Judge blinked several times before clearing his throat again, his slightly sluggish wits only belatedly catching up with Phoenix’s statement. “Oh! Yes, Ms. Trixie, any personal conversation with Mister Wright can wait until after session. Please tell the court the results of your investigation of the feather that was presented by the defense yesterday,” he directed. Trixie was not amused by Phoenix’s interruption of her gloating and gave out a slight grunt, displeased at her apparent inability to get a rise out of him. “You’re asking for it,” the showmare warned as she readied to reveal her findings, though Phoenix was unimpressed, certain he already knew what they were. “As expected, the search was in vain. The stupid feather didn’t match any of the animals in the cottage, meaning Mister Wrong was… wrong, as usual,” Trixie announced with a grin to little surprise of Phoenix. The Judge blinked at her reply, then his expression turned grave. “Well, that is unfortunate…” Trixie’s eyes gleamed. “No, it’s not. Now we can end this trial in record time,” Trixie grinned even more broadly. “Now where were we before Mister Wrong so stupidly presented that feather…? Oh, yes! You were about to pass Rainbow Trash’s guilty verdict, followed by issuing a contempt citation for Mister Wrong for falsely accusing Fluttershy in a pathetic attempt to buy time!” Trixie reminded The Judge. “Oh! That’s right; I believe that would be the route we should take,” The Judge agreed, readying his gavel and pinning Phoenix with a stare. “Mister Wright, I warned you yesterday that this court would take a very dim view of a fraudulent allegation against an innocent witness. And as that has now come to pass—” He yelled, pointing a finger and stopping The Judge from sealing the fate of his client—and himself. “Being a little vague about that ‘stupid feather’, don’t you think, Trixie?” Phoenix leaned over the rail to ask, following through on his plan. “Just because the feather didn’t come from one of Fluttershy’s animals doesn’t mean we can write it off!” She gave him a disdainful look, leaning over her own bench to glare back. “And just what else do you want the GREAT and POWERFUL Trixie to say, Mister Wrong? The feather didn’t match any of her animals and because of it, Fluttershy is exonerated. Your alternate theory of the crime is disproven and final line of defense is destroyed!” she said with a sneer. “That particular theory was disproven, yes. But that doesn’t mean the feather isn’t important! I don’t think it’s unreasonable for the prosecution to answer just one very simple question before verdict is passed, Your Honor: where did the feather come from?” Phoenix asked, making his appeal directly to The Judge. “As long as its owner remains unidentified, there is still the distinct possibility it belongs to a second witness! Or perhaps even the real culprit!” “Your rebuttal, Ms. Trixie?” The Judge prompted, surprised to not hear an immediate objection. Trixie remained silent at first, then gave Phoenix a strangely chilling smile. “You really want to know, Mister Wrong?” she asked in an oddly mild tone; Phoenix experiencing a sudden sinking feeling in his stomach as he saw the sly look on her face. “It will crush what little hope you have in this trial if Trixie does disclose where this feather came from.” “Tell me!” Phoenix demanded, though he was inwardly surprised. She WAS able to identify the origin of the feather? he suddenly worried, afraid he had underestimated the mare magician yet again. That’s okay, the feather’s just a distraction anyway. It shouldn’t matter much even if she did! “Very well, Mister Wrong. Just remember, you were the one who asked for this!” Trixie warned. “Upon adjournment of yesterday’s session, a prestigious scientific research team was summoned from Canterlot to help the local police analyze the feather. Upon arrival, they were to examine it and determine the exact species it came from.” “And what did they tell you?” The Judge asked in a curious tone. “Nothing. We didn’t need them,” Trixie said simply, looking down and smiling to Phoenix’s increasing consternation, having seen that look on other prosecutors before and knowing little good ever came if it. “And why not?” he asked with an askance look, uncertain what the mare magician was up to. Trixie waited a beat, visibly savoring the moment before raising her head and smiling triumphantly. “As it turned out, the owner of the feather herself came and told us it was hers!” Trixie informed the court, causing the gallery to go into an uproar. Phoenix’s jaw fell open. “But… but… that’s impossible!” he sputtered, seeing his carefully laid plan already falling to pieces. “The feather was too big to belong to a pony or any other creature in Ponyville!” he reminded the court, hoping against hope that Trixie was bluffing. But Trixie’s only answer was a very self-satisfied smirk. “You’ll see soon enough how possible it is, Mister Wrong. Because, in fact, the bearer of this feather witnessed the crime in all its gory detail!” she raised her voice to be heard over the fresh eruption of surprise from the audience. “There’s a witness?!” Phoenix croaked, slumping and sweating profusely, caught completely off-guard as The Judge demanded order by rapping his gavel repeatedly. I wasn’t expecting THIS! “Indeed there is, Mister Wrong—though in this matter, you were for once correct in that the owner of the feather might be a witness! In fact, they came to Fluttershy’s cottage yesterday while we were trying to find a match with her animals to personally present themselves, and announced to Trixie that they saw Rainbow Trash kill the victim!” Trixie revealed even more gleefully. Phoenix gaped, his sweating intensifying as his sensed his carefully laid plans already crumbling to pieces. “But that goes against everything we know!” “All will be revealed to you, Mister Wrong! Shall Trixie bring out her witness, Your Honor?” Trixie asked permission of The Judge, grasping victory once more. “Uh, yes. The suspense is killing me, to put it bluntly,” The Judge invited, though noting to himself that once again, one of Phoenix Wright’s wild theories had somehow borne fruit, and that in turn meant that, for the moment at least, he was spared a contempt citation for it. Trixie then looked at Phoenix. “You’ve sealed your fate, Mister Wrong!” she said as the Bailiffs were dispatched to fetch the witness. A minute later, the door to the witness room opened and Phoenix immediately caught a nauseating scent which clung to his nostrils like smoke off of a raging L.A. dumpster fire. Ugh! What’s that SMELL? he wondered, half the gallery likewise wrinkling their noses and squeezing their eyes shut in disgust at the stench that seemed to follow the newcomer in. His nose still burning, Phoenix gazed upon the unfamiliar creature through watery eyes. The new witness was a quadruped like any other pony, but otherwise looked little like one, having an eagle-like head and forelegs paired with a lion’s hindquarters. The latter was complemented by a long, tufted leonine tail and a set of large brown wings sprouting from her midsection while her avian features included a white feathered chest, short gold beak and bright yellow talons for forepaws. Though he had never seen such a creature before during his stay in Equestria, he remembered them from his reading and quickly identified her species. Hmm… that’s a griffon. They normally reside in the Griffon Kingdom. Most of their nation is located overseas in the continent of Aresia, but they’ve also got a province on this continent in the Canarian Maritimes. They’re long-range flyers and predators, but unlike ponies, they can’t manipulate weather and most can’t use magic, he recalled from his morning’s studies. “Witness, state your name, please,” Trixie instructed once she was sworn in, standing on all fours behind the podium. “The name’s Grizelda Behertz. But you can call me Gilda,” she said, replying to Trixie’s question in a very casual, even smug tone that caused a ripple of recognition through the equine audience. And not a happy one, Phoenix quickly noted as he studied her decidedly non-equine features. He was about to comment on something else when he noticed Rainbow Dash acting in a very odd way. “Huh?” His pegasus client was gesticulating wildly, looking like she was throwing a fit without actually making a sound. Uh… what’s she doing? Phoenix wondered along with most of the other onlookers, but as he watched her further, Rainbow Dash locked gazes with him, pointing to her mouth and shaking her head. Huh? Oh, right—I told her to be quiet. Wait, she took it WAY too literally! I just didn’t want her making a scene, not stay completely SILENT! Phoenix thought, rubbing his eyes over Rainbow Dash’s misinterpretation of his instructions. Still, why is she doing that? Does Rainbow KNOW this griffon? he wondered as his visibly-incensed client finally settled on an angry, outraged glare towards Gilda. “Witness! Is it true that you saw Rainbow Trash commit the murder three nights ago?” Trixie asked before he could contemplate an answer. But instead of replying, the griffon eagless broke out with a huge smile on her beak and looked at Trixie. “Hah! Rainbow Trash? Good one! I prefer Lame-bow Dash, though!” Gilda suggested to Trixie’s evident amusement, the mare magician smiling at the twist of phrase. “My, my. You certainly have a way with words, witness. They almost rival that of Trixie’s!” the showmare praised before going back on topic. “But is it true you saw her kill another pony in the Everfree Forest?” she asked again. This time, Gilda answered, scratching her feathered chest with the talons of her right forepaw and pinning Rainbow Dash with a triumphant look as she did so. “Yup! It’s true. Have to say, I never thought Dash had it in her, killing a pony in cold blood like that!” Gilda said, her words pushing Rainbow Dash even closer to the brink of a guilty verdict. Rainbow launched into a fresh but silent fit at that, making Phoenix wish he could sedate her. “So you witnessed the moment the defendant killed the victim?” The Judge broke in, but instead of getting a straight answer from the witness she growled at him, causing The Judge to flinch back. “YES!” she shouted in frustration. “How many times do I have to say it? I saw Rainbow Dash kill that pony!” she insisted, sending the whole courtroom into a renewed uproar. “But that’s impossible!” Phoenix yelled, pointing at Gilda. But then… Gilda’s wings flared up and she glared at Phoenix, her pale yellow eyes seeming to take on an orange glow, looking like she was about to swoop down on him as a hawk would a rabbit. “Are you calling me a liar, you pointy-haired human cretin?” she raged, the predatory look in her eyes making the hairs on the back of Phoenix’s neck stand on end, the human lawyer only then fully noticing her powerful leonine form and sharp, dangerous-looking talons. “Um, uh, no, it’s just…” Phoenix was lost for words as he scratched the back of his head and took on a goofy grin, suddenly wishing Twilight were there, trying to tell himself it wasn’t just for his protection. This would normally be the part where I shift blame to Gilda, but I remember from my reading that unlike pegasi, griffons can’t move or manipulate clouds. And Rainbow Dash already admitted to me she set it off anyway! he thought to himself, his mind racing, scrambling for a new strategy in the face of a fresh and potentially fatal setback. “Can you please testify to the court as to what you witnessed that night, uh… Ms. Behertz?” The Judge asked, apparently uncertain of the proper form of address for a griffon eagless. “Not a problem!” Trixie said amicably before Gilda could answer. “Witness, please testify as we discussed?” “Oh. Yeah! Sure! Here goes! I’ll tell you all why that pathetic pony sitting over there is a murderer beyond any doubt!” Gilda said with a huge smirk on her beaked face, leaning slightly over the podium. I have a bad feeling about this… Phoenix thought to himself, sensing his carefully laid plans slipping away. ————— WITNESS TESTIMONY ————— — What I saw, Dweebs! — “Rainbow Dash killed that other pony with a storm cloud. I was there.” Phoenix, The Judge, and the entire gallery waited for more details, but after several seconds of silence, it became clear nothing further was forthcoming. The Judge broke the awkward silence first. “Uh…?” was the only thing he could think to say. “And there you have it, Your Honor! Decisive eyewitness testimony!” Trixie proclaimed. But everypony else in the room had their jaws dropped wide open, none more so than Phoenix himself. “That was no testimony! That was barely even a sentence!” he shook off his shock and stated the obvious. The Judge nodded in agreement. “The defense is correct here, Ms. Trixie. That was far too short and undetailed to be considered a proper testimony.” “Let Trixie explain, Your Honor,” she replied easily. “This was one of the conditions Trixie had to uphold.” “What conditions?” Phoenix followed up with his own question, hand on his chin again. “As this court can plainly see, Miss Behertz is not a citizen of Equestria, and as it turns out, there are… diplomatic considerations to her appearing here. By the terms of the treaty between our two nations, Equestrian courts are not allowed to subpoena a citizen of the Griffon Kingdom without first having it approved by the Kingdom Consulate. “In this instance, they granted permission for her to testify, but only under a very strict set of conditions, noted here.” She floated a sealed scroll to the Judge and the defense bench. The Judge broke the seal and then unrolled the scroll, reading the contents in some surprise. “Ms. Trixie, this is highly irregular.” “To say nothing of improper!” Phoenix protested as he read them as well. “Brief statement only? Just three minutes of questioning? Your Honor, I can’t effectively cross-examine a witness like this!” “Mister Wright has a point, Ms. Trixie. The defense has the right to challenge the testimony, but these are very restrictive terms.” “Trixie agrees, Your Honor. But when Gilda came forward as a witness, she said she was constrained from testifying and had to first consult with the Gryphon Consulate in Canterlot, which is why she didn’t report it sooner. But she persisted and worked out the terms with her embassy, at which point she stepped forward and admitted to seeing the crime. She deserves a medal for doing the right thing!” Upon hearing this, Gilda stood up straighter and gave out a huge smile, preening over the praise. “Yeah, I do deserve a medal, don’t I?” she suggested, while Rainbow Dash launched into a fresh fit of movement, eyes bulging and wings shaking, pulling hard against her restraints, looking like she wanted to launch herself at the larger griffon and beat her to a pulp right then and there. Sympathizing with the sentiment, Phoenix curled his lip and gave the winged witness a glare. You’re sure modest! he said to himself, taking an instant disliking to her, certain there was more to the story then a single statement of testimony as Trixie continued to talk. “These are the terms, Your Honor. So Trixie prepared a testimony that meets those requirements and will have her in and out of here in no time.” “What can I say? I’m a really busy griffon!” Gilda agreed, gesturing casually with an upturned forepaw. “Speaking of which, Mister Wrong…” Trixie turned her attention to Phoenix this time. “What?” he asked, expecting to hear another insult. “As you have already read, you’re only allowed three minutes of questioning during the cross-examination. So choose your tangents and topics to nitpick carefully!” Trixie teased. “Your Honor! This is in direct contravention of court rules!” Phoenix appealed to The Judge. “If the defense cannot properly cross-examine the witness, then the defense moves that her testimony be disallowed!” “Trixie understands the defense’s frustration, Your Honor, but my hooves are tied here,” she said in a strangely respectful tone. “This is not just my request, but that of the Griffon government, and part of the agreement under which Ms. Behertz would testify is that the cross-examination would be limited. I am aware this is irregular, but please understand I had no choice but to agree, as Mister Wrong’s endless badgering could cause a diplomatic incident by grilling her all day for no other reason than for him to selfishly stall.” She put a hoof to her chest and her nose in the air as she spoke. Phoenix crossed his arms at that. “And just what is her job, anyway? I notice you didn’t ask for her occupation, Trixie,” he noted, following up the previous unasked question when the witness arrived. It almost HAS to be significant if Trixie deliberately omitted it! And what does she mean by a ‘diplomatic incident’? Trixie just grunted. “Both she and the Kingdom wish it to be kept confidential, but Trixie offers her personal assurance to this court it has nothing to do with this case, Your Honor.” Phoenix quickly put two and two together, coming up with an answer based on what Twilight had related to him of her investigation the previous day. I think I know EXACTLY what her occupation is! Phoenix speculated as The Judge examined the scroll and accompanying legal treaty text Trixie had passed him. And if I’m right, Gilda’s job might be only TOO relevant to this! The Judge reviewed the documentation again before nodding reluctantly, stroking his long beard for the first time that morning. “This request appears to be in order and in line with an accepted treaty,” he conceded. “I don’t like it either, but I’m afraid my hands are tied, Mister Wright. Your objection is overruled. Barring witness misconduct, I may only allow you three minutes of questioning.” Trixie grinned in satisfaction while Phoenix’s jaw dropped in disbelief. “Hah! Thank you for understanding, Your Honor,” the former said. “She’s all yours, Mister Wrong.” Phoenix was anything but pleased. NO! I can’t believe she got away with that! Trixie’s just trying to make my cross-examination as shallow as possible so I can’t get any information out of Gilda! he complained mentally, but as he examined his copy of the treaty text, he knew he was trapped as well. Why do I always get these completely arbitrary restrictions placed on me? You’d think we were playing a GAME or something! The Judge hammered down his gavel to make his decision final. “Very well, Mister Wright. The stage is yours,” The Judge said, pulling out an old-fashioned pocketwatch from beneath his robes Phoenix had no idea he owned. “I will be timing you. Remember, three minutes of cross-examination only.” He gave it a few twists for good measure before turning his attention back to Phoenix. Phoenix gave out a huge sigh before turning his focus back to the task at hand. It’ll be alright. With such a brief testimony, three minutes is about all it should take anyway. I wasn’t expecting this, and my plan’s out the window at this point, but just gotta roll with the punches I guess, he told himself, deciding he would simply fall back on his usual style of winging it, pouncing on any contradictions he spotted to uncover the truth. May be unorthodox, but it’s what I’m best at! —————— CROSS-EXAMINATION —————— “Rainbow Dash killed that other pony with a storm cloud. I was there.” “Let’s start this off with a simple question: What were you doing there?” Phoenix asked. Trixie countered. “This question has been asked and answered, Your Honor. We already know what Gilda was doing there. She was observing the crime.” “Yeah!” Gilda agreed. Phoenix and The Judge were very unimpressed, the former giving the unicorn prosecutor a baleful, narrow-eyed stare. For once, The Judge intervened on Phoenix’s side with a rap of his gavel. “Ms. Trixie, you may not answer for the witness. Ms. Behertz, answer the question.” But to Phoenix’s frustration, Gilda just shrugged. “I was flying in from Hoofington, passing over the forest on my way to Ponyville,” she said. “I saw an isolated cloud over the forest and heard the sounds of an argument coming from the clearing beneath it. Seemed strange, so I went to go check it out.” “Oh really? And you just happened to be flying right over the clearing?” Phoenix challenged, pointing a finger at her. “If she was flying in from the west where Hoofington lay, she would be coming in right over that section of forest, your Honor,” an unfazed Trixie pointed out. “The prosecution would be more than happy to produce maps of the greater area to prove it.” “I do not believe that will be necessary,” The Judge replied, pausing the timekeeping to consult an atlas of Equestria he kept at his desk before nodding. “The prosecution is correct. In any event, coincidence is not causation, Mister Wright. Move along!” The Judge directed, restarting his watch. Phoenix grimaced, realizing he’d once again underestimated Trixie—she had her witness very well-prepared. “Then one last follow-up: exactly why were you coming into Ponyville?” he asked her next. “To compete in the Equestrian 500,” she answered instantly. “You were going to race?” Phoenix asked dubiously. “Yeah. Got a problem with that, blue boy? I was a pretty fast flyer at Junior Speedster’s camp, and I’m a good racer now. Even Lamebow Dash over there would admit that,” she claimed with a smirk, causing Rainbow to give a derisive snort she couldn’t quite stifle. “Oh, really? Then why don’t you show up on the race roster?” he showed her the race program Twilight had obtained from The Judge the previous day. “A little odd that you’re not there, don’t you think?” But Trixie only smirked while Gilda glared at him in annoyance. “Because I haven’t registered yet, parrot-head! I was planning to do it the next morning, but it wasn’t exactly my first priority after witnessing a murder!” she all but snarled at him. The Judge’s gavel came down. “I agree with the witness. There is nothing nefarious there. Objection overruled! I will not penalize you as I consider it a valid question, but you have exhausted this avenue of inquiry, Mister Wright!” “Good job! You wasted your first minute of questioning, Mister Wrong! You’re making Trixie’s glorious triumph come all that much sooner!” the mare magician said in mock praise, lifting her chin up in arrogant glee. Phoenix glared at Trixie, certain that she’d somehow worked out the terms to keep him from pursuing potentially dangerous lines of questioning, equally annoyed that she’d successfully co-opted The Judge in doing so. “Rainbow Dash killed that other pony with a storm cloud. I was there.” “Let’s ask this next: what did you witness while you were in there?” Phoenix followed up. “She already said she witnessed the murder, Your Honor!” Trixie tried again, but The Judge’s gavel rang out. “Second warning, Ms. Trixie. Allow the witness to answer, or be penalized!” The Judge warned, but Trixie never lost her smile, leaving Phoenix wondering if her only intent was to eat up precious seconds of his inquiry. Regardless of the answer, Gilda was no more forthcoming for it. “I already said I witnessed the murder, you defense attorney dweeb!” she answered dismissively. “How much clearer can I make it?” Phoenix clenched his teeth, sensing that getting anything out of her was going to be like dragging Maya and Pearl to the dentist. “Fine. Then what did you see before the murder?” “Before?” she looked surprised by the question, but answered despite Trixie’s warning look. “I was flying over the forest clearing when I heard a familiar voice. I looked down and saw Dash arguing with another pony underneath a storm cloud. I wasn’t sure what was going on, so I went in for a closer look. I didn’t get a good look at the other pony while circling above, but I could tell he was male because of his size and deeper voice.” The Judge was curious about this statement. “The defendant was arguing with the victim? What does this mean?” he asked, stroking his beard again. The blackmail negotiations, no doubt, Phoenix guessed, but he could not reveal that unless he had to. “And just how were you able to see them? You may not know, but we have had numerous testimonies stating the forest is pitch-black at night,” Phoenix said while flapping several pieces of scroll paper filled with testimony transcripts from the previous day. But to his frustration, Gilda had an authoritative answer for that as well. “I’m a griffon. We can see in the dark… idiot!” she informed him, her eyes glowing orange again as if in demonstration. “Yeah… you idiot! Everypony knows griffons can see in the dark!” Trixie piled on, causing Phoenix to flush at his ignorance of Equestria coming into play again. “You’re so stupid!” Gilda piled on. Oh, great. It’s like Trixie in STEREO! he grumbled, wishing he could just click a remote and mute them both. Dammit, this is why I need Twilight here! Even with all that studying I couldn’t learn everything I needed to in one NIGHT! “So you saw them arguing with each other?” he asked, getting back on topic even as he hoped Twilight would return shortly. “Yeah, I hid and listened to what they were arguing about,” Gilda answered, giving him a wary look. “That begs the next question: why did you hide?” Phoenix followed up again. She gave a shrug of her feathered shoulders. “Because the whole thing seemed shady and ominous! I mean, a nighttime meeting in the middle of the Everfree Forest? Who the hay does that? I figured they were up to no good!” Gilda replied. Phoenix crossed his arms at that, giving her an askance look. “You do know that spying on others is considered shady and ominous as well, right?” he asked rhetorically to sounds of agreement from the audience. “Sounds like you were up to no good, too!” “Withdrawn,” Phoenix said easily, knowing the damage was already done to Gilda’s credibility in the eyes of both The Judge and gallery. “But since you were there, did you hear what they were saying?” “Uh… yeah.” Gilda paused for several seconds as she attempted to remember. “I didn’t hear the first part of it, but the stallion said something about revealing a secret and then Dash answered that she ‘didn’t care’. Then she said something about ‘having a better idea’ just before she flew up and bucked the storm cloud to set it off. He screamed like a pansy when the lightning bolt fried him,” Gilda said with an amused smile. This made Phoenix think again, scratching his chin as he considered her words. But that CAN’T be true! Rainbow Dash said the bolt didn’t come close to hitting him and I know she wasn’t lying—so Gilda HAS to be! But how do I prove it? I only have one minute of questioning LEFT! His thoughts were dispelled by a tsk-tsking sound from Trixie that very much reminded him of Franziska von Karma. “Two minutes down, less than one to go! You see, Mister Wrong? Your endless pressing works against you here!” the mare magician needled, having been timing him with an enchanted hourglass, sensing victory near. “Rainbow Dash killed that other pony with a storm cloud. I was there.” Gotta make this one count! Phoenix knew, betting it all on his last line of questioning. “For my final minute of cross-examination: where were you?” The eagless gave him an incredulous look as Trixie remained silent. “What kind of question is that? I was in the forest!” Gilda said in a slightly exasperated tone, but Phoenix shook his head. “No. I mean, where were you while listening to those two talking? You said you were hiding? Where?” Phoenix pressed on, believing he already knew the answer but needing her confirmation first. If she gives it, I’ve GOT her! Gilda gave a frustrated leonine hiss. “If it’ll get me out of here quicker, just give me a map or something, and I’ll show you!” she suggested in some exasperation. “Bailiff! Please give the witness the diagram of the crime scene,” The Judge ordered, pausing the clock again. The map used the previous day was then floated in by a unicorn guard a minute later. Gilda sighed as she tapped the map with her location at that time. “I was perched in this tree, if you really want to know,” she said, tapping the tree at the northwest corner of the clearing with her talon, further highlighting her location by picking up a red marker quill with her talons and putting a large red dot at the location at Phoenix's request. Phoenix rubbed his chin in speculation, keeping his expression carefully neutral even as he was internally jumping for joy. “That’s the same tree we found the feather in. Then you’re admitting it belongs to you?” Phoenix held his breath, pointing to the brown feather he had originally used to accuse Fluttershy. It was all he could do to keep the smile off his face as she nodded in confirmation. “Yeah, that’s definitely mine. It must’ve fallen out while I was watching,” Gilda said with a shrug. “We griffons do tend to molt a bit in the summer.” “We medically confirmed it was her feather, Your Honor,” Trixie said, floating The Judge and Phoenix a fresh scroll prepared by a police doctor that stated it was Gilda’s. “So the mystery of its origin is solved, and there is no further reason to either keep the witness or hold off on a guilty verdict! Your three minutes of questioning are up, Mister Wrong! The cross-examination is over! You may go about your business now, witness,” Trixie said, before Phoenix or The Judge had a say. To Phoenix’s frustration, instead of coming down on Trixie for usurping his authority again, The Judge nodded in agreement. “It would seem that way. There are no problems with the witness’s rather short testimony,” The Judge said, hammering his gavel once to make the decision final as he gave Gilda his own permission to leave. “You are excused, Ms. Behertz!” “Your friendly neighborhood Gilda just doing her duty in the cause of justice. Later!” And with that, the eagless left the witness stand and started heading for the door, taking what seemed like Phoenix’s final hope with her.