Part 37 - Dusk Decisions
A frustrated Twilight left the Detention Center, more troubled than ever.
I don’t know what to make of this… She shook her head as she began to walk home, lost in thought.
My best guess is that after the police wouldn’t listen to him, Cruise went to the clearing and killed Ace out of desperation to protect his sister, she speculated, hoping that if that was the case, they’d go easy on him. Might even explain his attack on Phoenix, if he thought him uncovering the truth would endanger her as well? Maybe that’s what he meant by saying he had to go after him or else ‘he’d find out’?
She shook her head again at that. Part of her still wanted to hate Cruise Control for what he’d done to Phoenix, but… she just couldn’t. Everything Cruise does, he does for his sister, not himself, she now knew. He was in an impossible situation; he’s been through his own private Tartarus these past few years because of Ace and the accident. And you saw his strength in there—he could have fought back or gotten away at the edge of the Everfree, but he didn’t. And he didn’t have to tell me where Phoenix was, she further realized, sensing whatever he was hiding behind the new batch of psycho-locks, there was likely much more to the story than she knew.
A sudden thought stopped her mid-stride. Actually… if he’s just afraid for his sister, maybe I could talk to Princess Celestia about keeping her in that hospital? Give him a royal guarantee she won’t be removed, and I bet he’d open up! she had the sudden inspiration, resolving to take it up with the Princess after the trial, satisfied for now with what she’d uncovered and having a new suspect. Should be enough to prove Rainbow innocent, at least!
On a whim, she made a detour to stop by Rarity’s home, telling herself it was to get Spike’s sapphire and to let her dressmaking friend know her services were needed to fix Phoenix’s suit. Just hope she’s around, Twilight thought as she knocked on the door of the now-closed Carousel Boutique.
It was answered, not by Rarity but by Sweetie Belle, who told Twilight that Phoenix had stopped by not five minutes before she did, and for the same reason.
Twilight wasn’t sure how Phoenix knew Rarity, but her heart sank when Sweetie Belle further explained that her older sister was out having dinner with a potential Canterlot client and wouldn’t be back until quite late. Twilight had also been hoping Rarity would be there so she could have somepony she trusted to talk with about Phoenix; she badly needed a sounding board to sort out her conflicted feelings towards him.
And to make the decision she’d been putting off on whether to replace him as defense counsel or not.
Leaving a message with Sweetie Belle that she needed a sapphire for Spike and emergency repairs for Phoenix’s suit, Twilight started to head for the library again, but this time found herself stopping at Sugar Cube Corner, both for a light dinner and to tell Pinkie Pie that ‘Feenie’ was safe. Pinkie reacted to the news with a leap of joy and a heartfelt hug of Twilight, spinning her around and telling her friend she was already planning to throw one of her “extra-super-duper-SPECIAL!” parties for him after he got Rainbow acquitted.
Wha—? What did he do to deserve THAT? Twilight blinked, remembering the last such party Pinkie had thrown, for Rainbow Dash after she won the Cloudsdale Young Flyers’ Competition. It had been held the following Friday night in the library and surrounding plaza and most of Ponyville had turned out for it; they had all dressed up in their Grand Galloping Gala finest for the occasion and even Princess Celestia had made an appearance a couple hours in.
In truth, Twilight didn’t actually remember all of it—in fact, the last half of the night was a blacked-out blur to her—but judging by the pounding in her head and party debris the next day, which included glitter all over the library floor, Vinyl Scratch and several other ponies passed out in the yard and several blurry but still blushworthy photographs (which she had immediately ordered Spike to burn), it had been as big a doozie as the Swamp Hydra. Better watch my cider intake next time. And was that a hickey or a bruise? she still didn’t know, unable to shake the odd feeling there had been somepony in her bed during the night.
To her surprise, the Cakes were relieved to hear Phoenix was safe as well, informing her that he had been by for lunch courtesy of Pinkie Pie, and that “anypony who likes my pastries and coffee is a good pony in my book!” in the words of a visibly-pregnant Mrs. Cake. “Even if he’s not a pony,” she shrugged as she served Twilight an orange smoothie, large strawberry muffin and slice of honeydew melon, using her tail as a serving tray and sliding the platter holding the order right off on to the table. Twilight thanked her but ate slowly, some part of her sensing she was just trying to put off going home, knowing what awaited her there…
Still not ready to face either Phoenix or the decision to fire him.
Leaving Sugar Cube Corner, she started back for the library but soon found herself wandering again, this time to nearby Ponyville Park, where she ended up on the same small arch bridge she and Apple Bloom had found Pinkie’s golf club under. There were only a few ponies around, and Twilight soon found herself leaning over the bridge railing, staring over the river towards at the setting sun.
So… what am I supposed to do about Phoenix? she asked nopony in particular, her thoughts dwelling on the human stallion again. But he’s NOT a stall… oh, buck it, she gave up, sitting down heavily on her haunches and looking down at her reflection in the water. I like him. I don’t know why, but I do, she finally admitted in defeat. So was THIS the big joke, princess? she asked her regent with her thoughts again, not expecting a reply.
Twilight looked down at the water in frustration. She’d tried hard to ignore it or blame it on odd circumstances, including the romance novels of Rarity’s she’d been a little too engrossed in before the murder. But after everything she’d thought and experienced since he arrived, from her initial fascination over him to how Trixie’s insults of him had set her emotions (quite literally!) afire, she was increasingly forced to acknowledge that whatever she was feeling for Phoenix went beyond all that.
And she didn’t get it. He didn’t behave like most stallions, certainly not like the ones in the romance novels she’d read, where males were either portrayed as proverbial ‘stallions in distress’ requiring rescue or occasionally as evil or amoral ponies converted to the light by the love of a beautiful, powerful mare.
She shook her head. As a human, he lacked any kind of natural defense—no unicorn magic, pegasus power of flight or earth pony strength—so if any male met the definition of a stallion in distress, it would be him. And yet, he didn’t even remotely act like one, taking severe and repeated personal risks despite his apparent lack of power and unfamiliarity with Equestria, deliberately exposing himself to danger, all to help his client.
All to help her, even when she had shunned him.
Even when he knew she didn’t want anything to do with him.
Her cheeks warmed at that. Nopony’s ever treated me like that before, she realized. He knew I was lying to him, but was still willing to represent Rainbow. When I abandoned him, he tried to investigate on his own. He knew he was probably walking into a trap by going into the Everfree, but he didn’t care. He was nearly killed, but he didn’t quit. He knew I was trying to fire him, and he still wanted to help! she shook her head in disbelief, remembering how struck she was when he insisted he still wanted to aid her even after all he’d been through, whether it was as the lead attorney or not. Even more incredibly, he wanted her forgiveness, which was completely backwards to her way of thinking as well.
She tried to remember what she’d heard about humans, wishing she’d at least known he’d be one before summoning him so she could have studied them more. Omnivorous… descended from primates… weird nudity taboos… tend to form monogamous relationships with a single mate, she vaguely remembered reading, completely unlike the herd-based family structure that ponies preferentially used; a necessity in a society where mares outnumbered stallions more than five to one.
“They’ve got equal gender ratios, so the males have to woo females instead of the other way around! How cool is that?” Lyra had once told her over lunch at magic school, visibly wistful about the idea.
Twilight grinned a little wanly at that, knowing she’d already seen some evidence of it, given the deferential manner in which he’d treated her and Fluttershy. And I’d be lying if I said I didn’t like it, she admitted, only to have the thought subsumed beneath a fresh wave of resentment and anger welling up from deep within her. “But I didn’t summon him here to be a coltfriend, I summoned him to defend Rainbow Dash, and he did a horrible job of it!” she reminded herself out loud, her eyes narrowing. “He didn’t study, and it nearly got Rainbow sent to the sun—it still may! And regardless of his reasons, he still tried to shift blame to Fluttershy and she spent half the afternoon in jail! Even if Fluttershy forgave him, how can I?” she asked her reflection in the water.
Well, what else was he SUPPOSED to do, Twilight? her reflection seemed to answer back in her own thoughts. Could you think of another way to prolong the trial and prevent a guilty verdict? the other, seemingly more sensible part of her challenged.
She blinked at that. It wasn’t the first time she had spoken to herself in a mirror, a habit Spike had teased her about in the past, but projecting her thoughts onto her reflection helped her to see both sides of an argument, and nopony was close enough to hear her. “Well, no… but he lied!” she protested. “And even if he meant well, he did what he did to Fluttershy without permission or consent!”
But isn’t that exactly what you did to HIM? Her thoughts suddenly echoed Fluttershy’s words at the cottage. Fluttershy was right, Twilight—you summoned him here without warning or asking, lied to him repeatedly, guilted him into defending Rainbow Dash… and then you turn on him when things inevitably go sour?
Twilight shifted uncomfortably. “But he should have studied!” she tried again.
Even if he had, would it really have made that much difference? her more sensible side asked. He had no chance to acclimate to this world; no real chance to investigate except for ten minutes at the crime scene, she reminded herself through her reflection. Study or no, you sent him in there disoriented and sleep-deprived against a well-prepared and out-for-blood Trixie. Even if he WAS the greatest defense attorney there is, how could the trial have turned out anything BUT badly?
“The Judge didn’t have a problem,” she mumbled with faltering confidence, only to watch her reflection shake her head again.
The Judge didn’t have to gather evidence, investigate, and present a case, came the rebuttal. All he had to do was study for a few hours and then listen to what was presented at trial. His job was easier. A defense attorney needs a lot more time to prepare for a trial than a judge—time YOU didn’t give him, Twilight!
Twilight closed her eyes and looked away at that, increasingly feeling trapped. She looked up again to see the sun hadn’t moved—the yellow orb seemed to be frozen in the sky before her as if the Princess herself was awaiting her decision; she swore she could all but feel Celestia’s eyes on her, asking what she would do.
She averted her gaze, looking down at the water again. I’ve always trusted you, Princess, but here—
The sun itself suddenly seemed to brighten, drawing her eyes back to it. Is it him or YOURSELF you don’t trust, Twilight? This time, it was Celestia’s voice that sounded in her head, causing her to start.
Wha—? Princess? she called out with her thoughts.
My apologies, my loyal student, but you were broadcasting your thoughts and fears quite strongly and our long association meant I could hear them, her regent and mentor explained, though Twilight couldn’t help but wonder if that was the full truth. So why are you so adamant about firing him, Twilight? Is this really about his poor trial performance, or are you simply afraid of what you’re feeling? Celestia’s voice asked gently but directly.
Twilight thought about that, only to shake her head, surprised at the answer she came up with. “No. It’s not just about that,” she insisted in reply, turning her gaze back on the setting sun. “It’s because of… how he used her!” she finally understood, her eyes going wide with realization. “It isn’t about him not studying, and it’s not because I can’t deal with liking him—though I admit it doesn’t help,” she said through gritted teeth. “It’s about what he did this morning; treating Fluttershy like… like a sacrificial pawn in a chess match!” she exclaimed, tears welling in his eyes. “I’m sorry, Princess—I don’t care what he was trying to do, or whatever it is I’m feeling for him; I will not have my friends treated like that, and it’s very hard for me to forgive somepony—or somebody—who does!” she answered, her anger at him rekindled.
Celestia’s answer was instant. Your ire is understandable, my loyal student, and your love for your friends does you credit—you have clearly learned much about friendship in the time you have spent in Ponyville, her regent acknowledged. But in this matter, you must look past your personal feelings and view this in more practical terms.
You must know that what Phoenix Wright did this morning was an act of desperation, not callousness, the Princess reminded her prized pupil, the rays of the sun taking an almost pinkish hue as they neared sunset, bathing Twilight in her mentor’s power and presence. Do you truly believe his regret for that act is not genuine? Do you believe that Fluttershy would have forgiven him so easily if he wasn’t sincere? And do you truly believe that I would recommend him simply because I thought your interest in him amusing? she followed up, her voice taking on a slightly reproachful tone.
Twilight deflated again. “No,” she admitted. The Princess certainly had a trickster streak in her and loved to play pranks, but the young mage also knew from long experience as her student they were always meant to help and teach, not to torment.
It is good you realize that. But what you must also realize is that what Phoenix faced this morning is exactly what YOU will be faced with as well, should you take over the defense, Celestia warned. You know the grudge Trixie holds, and you saw firsthoof how good a prosecutor she is. Do you REALLY stand a chance against her in court?
“I don’t know, but I have to try!” Twilight bit her now-quivering lip.
The decision to do so is yours and Rainbow’s, but you must first answer this question, my loyal student: can you become an adequate lawyer in just one night? the Princess asked again. And even if you can, is merely ADEQUATE going to be enough against Trixie?
Twilight slumped and shook her head at that, hearing another gentle rebuke in her mentor’s voice. As much as she hated ceding anything to Trixie, there was no denying the mare magician had proven herself a superb prosecutor who didn’t make mistakes—Phoenix himself had said as much. Worse, even with what she’d learned from Cruise Control, she had no proof he committed the murder—the presence of ‘psycho-locks’ was hardly admissible as evidence; she’d be laughed out of court if she tried—and revealing Ace’s blackmail scheme didn’t mitigate the mountain of evidence still arrayed against Rainbow Dash.
If anything, the blackmail just gives Rainbow a stronger motive to have committed the murder herself, she belatedly realized, her shoulders slumping with the realization that nothing she’d uncovered could really help her friend.
Despite that, part of Twilight still wanted very badly to try; to show Phoenix, Trixie and everypony else that she could be a lawyer; that she could beat the rival unicorn on her own terms and at her own game again. But she quickly realized that would be falling into a trap of ‘anything you can do I can do better’ she’d previously promised not to enter.
Twilight pursed her lips. No. I’m better than that. This isn’t about me and Trixie, and it’s not about me and Phoenix. It’s about Rainbow Dash and who gives her the best chance of acquittal tomorrow, she reminded herself sternly, increasingly recognizing that regardless of her confusion and conflicted feelings, there was only one real choice.
With that, she closed her eyes and made her decision, mentally informing the Princess. In her mind’s eye, Twilight could see her mentor’s approving nod and smile, the glow of the sun intensifying for a moment before dimming back to its normal level and resuming its trip to the horizon. And what of me and Phoenix, Princess? She called after her mentor with her thoughts before the sun could track too much further. What am I supposed to do about what I’m feeling for him?
That choice is yours… and his! was all Celestia would say, a note of coyness and amusement back in her voice.
“That isn’t very helpful,” Twilight muttered, deciding she would have to be content with resolving one question for now. Silently praying that she was making the right call, she left the park and made her long-delayed return to the library.
Library
June 10th, 6:15PM
Arriving home, Twilight noticed the front door to the library was wide open—something that she’d scolded Spike for in the past and generally annoyed her to no end.
Taking a deep breath to steady herself, she walked inside, entering to see Phoenix lounging on a reading couch and Spike talking to him almost conspiratorially, discussing her as if she wasn’t there. “—and you don’t know the half of it!” she caught the tail end of Spike snickering. “Let me tell you, Twilight’s a total nerd!”
“Excuse me?” Twilight asked in an irritated tone, causing the pair’s heads to spin around in surprise.
Spike cringed under her withering glare, offering up his most ingratiating grin in response. “Oh! You’re back, Twilight! I… um… uh… I was just on my way to… um… organize those awesome books my intelligent and smart friend reads! Uh… later!” he raced upstairs before she could remind him he had chores to do, nearly tripping over his apron and Owlowiscious’ perch on the way up.
She allowed herself a brief grin of satisfaction which quickly disappeared as Phoenix caught her attention by standing up. “So… did you find out what you needed to know?” he asked her, clasping his hands in front of him in what she was now recognizing as a gesture of respect and humility.
Despite his continuing deferential treatment of her, she gave him a terse nod, hoping she could just get past him and go to bed; not have to deal with him again that night. “Yes. I have to say, your Magatama’s power is amazing. I’ll fill you in about what I learned tomorrow, but in short, I’m all but certain the pony who attacked you is the real culprit,” she announced shortly, trotting past Phoenix without looking at him and starting to head upstairs.
“That’s very good news,” he acknowledged with a nod, giving her some hope that would be the only interaction needed; his mere presence was causing her emotions to surge again and she didn’t know how much longer she could hold them off. “Wait—so you’re not replacing me?” he called after her, catching her short of the stairwell.
She stopped and sat down, closing her eyes as she looked down at the floor. Her heart was beginning to race; she felt something primal and powerful welling up within her, even if it didn’t yet reach her voice. “I’ve thought about it a lot. And I realize now that you mean well,” Twilight conceded. “What happened this morning is as much my fault for yanking you from your own world against your will and giving you no time to acclimate or prepare for a trial in this one,” she further admitted, reciting her reasoning. “What you did wasn’t fair to Fluttershy, but what I did wasn’t fair to you either. So it wouldn’t be right to hold it against you. And if what you say is true… you stand a better chance against Trixie than I do,” she concluded, looking down at the rug on the floor, amazed she could sound so calm even as she felt ready to explode.
She heard his exhalation of relief. “Thank you, Twilight. You made the right choice,” he promised.
“You’re welcome. But Phoenix…?” she trailed off.
“Yes?”
Twilight could hold herself back no longer. Without warning, she turned and lunged at him, rearing up and shoving him hard against a bookshelf, pinning him in place with her weight and magic. She held him there for a moment before speaking, hooves against his shoulders and looking up at him from the level of his chest, her aura an angry orange and glowing red eyes piercing his brown ones with a soul-freezing stare that could have rivaled Fluttershy’s.
When she was satisfied she had his full attention, she spoke, finally giving voice to her long-held fury. “These are my friends, Phoenix,” she informed him in a very quiet but sharp, even ominous tone. “I love them more than life, and I’d do anything to protect them, so let me make this very clear: my friends are not to be used as pawns in a legal chess match between you and TRIXIE!” she warned him, giving him a brief but sharp shake with her hooves and aura, the glow in her eyes intensifying for a moment and causing his to widen.
“I now understand why you accused Fluttershy, and I accept that at that moment, you had no choice if you were to save Rainbow. But don’t you EVER...! pull a stunt like that again without running it past me first! Understood?” she ordered him, emphasizing her final word with another shake of his shoulders.
A visibly shocked and fearful Phoenix didn’t answer right away, swallowing as he stared at her with his eyes wide. She watched as he gathered his courage, slowly raising his hands to grasp her hooves as they lay against his shoulders; she made no move to stop him. “Y-yeah… I won’t, I promise,” he said a little unsteadily, giving her blunt appendages a reassuring squeeze, his touch sending a sudden shiver down her spine. “Believe me, you couldn’t hate me any more than I hate myself for it, but I shouldn’t need to do anything like that again. From here on out, only purpose is to get Rainbow acquitted and to find out what really happened in the forest that night,” he pledged, his eyes never leaving hers.
Doing her best to ignore his hands on her forelegs, she studied his face carefully, trying to determine if he meant what he said. To his credit, he didn’t flinch from her glowing red eyes and she could find no trace of deception or deceit in his human features, nor did any more of the ‘psycho-locks’ appear. He… he really means it! she realized. And that means… Fluttershy and the Princess are right! I really CAN trust him! she finally accepted, the red glow in her eyes fading to reveal their normal purple color and her aura relaxing, releasing him from its grip.
“I-I’m sorry. I… I didn’t mean to scare you. It was just that… I’d been holding that in all day and I had to get it off my chest,” she told him in a shaky voice, feeling faint after the release of tension and leaning on him heavily, realizing she’d used up almost all her remaining magic with that display.
Recovering from his fright, he gave her hooves another squeeze, causing her eyes to flicker to them, some part of her amazed his fingers could be so soft and strong all at the same time. “It’s all right. I’ll be the first to admit I deserved that,” he replied with a slightly wan and rueful grin. “This hasn’t been one of my better days, and I don’t think I have any right to ask this of you or Fluttershy after this morning, but… please forgive me?” he asked, bowing his head before her.
Her feelings vented and her anger spent, Twilight found she was finally able to do so. “Fluttershy forgave you. So I guess I can too. The Princess also said I can trust you, and that everything would be fine if you were here,” Twilight remembered, giving him a genuine smile. Abruptly, she began to tear up again as the weight of the situation crashed down anew on her; realizing how precarious the fate of Rainbow Dash still was. And that Phoenix Wright was now her only hope. “Phoenix… please save my friend!” she begged him. “Please…”
His expression softened and he stood up straighter, releasing her hooves and moving his arms to embrace her fully; one hand going behind her head and the other to her shoulders. “I’ll try—no. I won’t let you down this time!” he promised her in a quiet but determined voice, gently pulling her head to his chest, taking noticeable care not to touch her horn. Though surprised, her eyes widening as she realized what he was doing, the young unicorn mage did not resist, finding herself craving his touch and comfort.
Hold me. Tell me everything is going to be fine, she silently pleaded. Tell me Rainbow will be found not guilty and by tomorrow night she’ll be soaring the sky again instead of being sent to the sun…
He obliged her. “I swear to heaven and on the memory of my late mentor that I’ll prove Rainbow Dash innocent, and neither Trixie nor Timberwolves will stop me,” Phoenix swore to her softly but fervently, gently stroking her mane with one hand while his other rested on her shoulders, holding her against him.
Her eyes squeezed shut at that, tears of gratitude welling within them. “Th-thank you,” came Twilight’s quavering voice, her entire body starting to tremble. With that, Twilight gave in fully to his embrace, soaking up his strength and presence until—
“Oh, get a room, you two!” Spike called down from the second floor, causing them both to flush and hurriedly pull away. “Take the mushy stuff somewhere else!”
“Who!” Owlolicious called from his perch, an odd tone in his hoot, his head swiveled towards them and smiling out of the sides of his beak.
Still blushing, Twilight pushed back from him and dropped back to all fours, sitting down on her haunches, sheepishly rubbing a hoof behind her head. “Um… th-thank you. That spare bed is in the same place,” she said in a slightly flustered tone, turning away from him. She felt warm and lightheaded, strangely unsteady on her hooves; she swore she could still feel his hands on her, one resting against her shoulders and the other stroking her mane. “Try to get lots of sleep this time, okay? I’m pretty tired after all that’s happened today. Investigating sure takes a lot out of you.” She yawned, making a show of stretching out languidly before Phoenix, briefly flagging her tail at him before she caught herself.
“Tell me about it,” an equally-flustered Phoenix agreed with her; she could see him rubbing the back of his own head out of the corner of her eye but couldn’t tell if he was looking at her.
“I, uh… think I’m going to bed early,” Twilight announced, finding herself suddenly unable to look him in the eye. Did… did he see what I did? Does he even know what it meant? she wondered slightly frantically, uncertain if she more hoped he didn’t, or that he did.
His voice gave no indication either way. “Alright. I’m probably going to crash soon, too,” he said in sympathy, sounding nearly as tired as she was.
“Good night,” Twilight called to him, then trotted upstairs to her upper-floor bedroom loft, getting halfway up before she realized she was putting some extra sway in her hips. She briefly glanced over her shoulder and saw that his eyes were on her, quickly averted when he saw her looking back; she flushed again and hurried upstairs before her body and tired mind could conspire to betray her again. The choice is yours… and his, she remembered Celestia saying, but it was not a choice she was anywhere near ready to make, and she sincerely doubted he was, either.
Her eyes fluttering as she reached her bed, Twilight crawled under her covers, using the final fading wisps of her aura to shut her blinds against the waning rays of the sun. She was barely able to do it; realizing that for the first time in many years, she had completely exhausted her power. For a unicorn, magical exhaustion was physical as well; she knew that regardless of the thoughts and emotions still running through her head, she was not going to remain awake much longer.
I still don’t get it. But there’ll be time to figure out things with Phoenix later, once Rainbow is freed, she thought, deciding she didn’t need all the answers right away. IF Rainbow is freed, she reluctantly reminded herself. What will happen tomorrow? Will she be found not guilty? she worried, trying not to think of what would happen if she wasn’t.
As if an answer, Phoenix’s promise to prove Rainbow Dash innocent sounded in her head again, and this time… she found she believed it, relaxing into her mattress and manually pulling her star-patterned bedspread up over her body.
Her fatigue and exhaustion—both magical and emotional—finally catching up to her, Twilight fell asleep, her dreams filled with human hands, Celestia’s sun… and psycho-locks.
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see a upcomming love story comming and i love it
I can't wait for the trial to start. Pls update soon.
Oooh, always love a good love story..... anyways, keep up the AWESOME work!
Please PLEASE don't do any strange shipping! They were doing so well investigating, I'd hate to see bizarre romance starting up.
Ooh love is in the air. Well can't wait to see where this courtroom romance will go.
2536188
Not to worry. The greater story takes precedence; this is just intended as a subplot that only goes so far. The investigation is over and It'll be back to the trial soon.
All of my MOARS!
Serioisly! Write more! I demand to see more.
...
And something tells me that there's more to this tale than meets the eye.
2536248 You're here, too?
2539787 Why yes I've been following this for some time now.
Surely you've seen at least one comment from me, right?
2539805 Sorry, I haven't.
By the way, about that thing I bought up yesterday...what are your opinions about it?
Please reply to this comment either with a PM, or over in the group where I first bought it up.
2536592 2536248
Be a couple more days before the next chapter is ready, but if you guys want more in the meantime, Part 25 was updated to match this latest chapter. Give it a read if you want to see these events from Phoenix's point of view...
...Blacked out blur...
...Glitter all over...
...Stranger in bed...
...passed out in yard...
...hickey or a bruise...
There's a stranger in my bed. There's a pounding in my head. Glitter all over the room. Pink flamingoes in the pool. I smell like a mini-bar. DJs passed out in the yard. Barbies' on the barbeque. There's a hickey or a bruise. Pictures of las night ended up online. Im screwed. Oh well. Its a blacked-out blur...
Cool refrence
>>Kipaji (Comment right before mine)
Good. Good. Can't wait for the chapter to come out.
2630991
Finally, somebody caught it!
2631900
Well, my cutie mark IS a talent for noticing things...
I shouldn't have said that...
2637068
It's a foreshadowing reference to future events described in Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney. Turnabout Storm is said to take place between the second and third games of the Ace Attorney series (Justice for All and Trials and Tribulations). Apollo Justice is the fourth game. In it, Phoenix looks like this:
files.gamebanana.com/img/ss/requests/58d88970d5fd5.jpg
To explain why would be a spoiler, but you can go here if you want to know: http://aceattorney.wikia.com/wiki/Apollo_Justice:_Ace_Attorney
...
I'm not even gonna say anything.
And that, Twilight, is why males are the dominant human gender.
I must say I really like the whole "human stallion" thingie, it's funny how the males are here the "weaker" gender which needs to be protected by the strong and dependable mares and how Feenie being such a physical weak example of a stallion invovkes all those protective and "mine!" feelings in Twily. <3
Ya, I love this version of equestria where the females take on the traditional male gender role. Herds are cool in this version and it makes sense.
I am no one of those, which believes, that they can really love more special someponys than one, but as long as she doesn´t rope Phoenix into one of those it is okay.
Sometimes i believe, just because we can´t see many Stallions on the show, doesn´t have to mean there aren´t more, but i would probably agree with your theory.
Did she said, that Stallions can do more or less nothing special there? Or is this story in that one Universe, where Stallions act more like Mares?
I think i like it more if anyone has the chance to be what they want, and not a special role arrangement, but in this story i more or less don´t care.
Is it me, or was that a reference of katey Perry and a sketch of the tgif song mlp style by John joseco?
Understatement of the year! I didn't know how confused I was about this ship until coming back to read it.
Think I need a ginger ale. That was such an epic fail!
References. Well all love em, hate em, can't live without em.
Good to know ponies aren't without their silly tropes.
This would be the "something more" the narration mentioned. Twilight loves, for want of a better word, Phoenix because of his very nature. He's a human, he's different from her surroundings and possesses desirable qualities. In a word: xenophilia. I guess ponies really are a mirror image of Western Civilization. That's adequate as far as explanations go. I may have sort of used that excuse myself in one of my stories. I guess my only remaining issue is why Twilight didn't react to Phoenix's betrayal with a more marked change in her behavior towards a possibly existential threat. I dunno, seems like the kind of thing an intelligent herbivore might do. It's not a huge flaw in the grand scheme of things, but it does make the admittedly humorous 'Twilight gets horny at a bad time' scenes questionable.
This Celestia is just as inconsistent as the one in the show. So I guess she's consistent.
Now that's the Twily I know and love: the one that throws logic at problems. Why is logic so underutilized? It worked for Sherlock Holmes! I'm really happy the issue resolved itself this way. If I have to hear "follow your heart" as a way a female character resolves issues one more flipping time...
Fair enough. Surely, it takes two to tango.
Speaking of Katy Perry...
It's not too late to say no to your unicorn girlfriend, Phoenix Wright...
Oh who am I kidding? The porn has already been written!
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I can't tell you how many time I asked myself what in the name of Celestia and NeoArtimus I was doing, and if I did this over, I would have respected the latter's wishes for knowing about them.
And yet.. I'm glad I didn't, for what came out of it. Funny how that works...
I think I may have overdone them in places, actually.
Something I'll probably have to fix later.
If anything, being from the equivalent of a fairy tale fantasy world, they'd have even more!
Your all-time favorite story!!!!!
That's the thing about love and attraction, though. Feelings for another don't go away instantly, even in the face of betrayal. Sometimes they just hang on all the stronger, in fact... bottom line is that love isn't logical, and that holds no matter who you are.
Celly saw both a chance to save Rainbow and teach Twilight, and maybe get a few laughs out of it in the bargain. I doubt she saw all this coming, though, and realized some more direct intervention was needed here. She could have handled things a bit better, or maybe she listened to the voice in her head a little too much... but does that reflect more on Mia, or her?
Give Twilie credit for doing the right thing even under severe stress and emotional turmoil, between Rainbow, Fluttershy and Phoenix. She just needed a nudge here, and Celly gave her one.
WHAT? Are you saying an actual porn shipfic has been written based on this???
What kind of sick and depraved mind would DO such a thing???
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i was just here for context at first