Months passed. For Maya it felt like everything was moving so quickly. She was happy with life, with Misty and with Phoenix and the rest of her family. That's what he was now. Family. But she still hadn't told him the truth. Every time she would think of it, she would find some excuse not to. She knew the real reason why: she was scared of his reaction. Everything was going so well. Their relationship was wonderful, he loved Misty like he was, well, his own, and she didn't want anything to change that. But it wasn't fair either. Not to Phoenix or to Misty, and she knew that. Soon, she promised herself over and over. Soon.

"You're looking chipper today. Did Phoenix stay over again last night?"

Maya sucked her teeth, trying not to act too embarrassed at her sister's words. She leaned over her paper at the kitchen table to continue working on her assignment. "Maybe," she said.

Mia patted Maya's hair as she stood beside her chair. "I'm just curious. I've purposely been staying at Diego's more often lately so you two can have some alone time without needing to find someone to watch Misty. And I'm not dumb. Did you think I wouldn't notice his toothbrush in the bathroom? Or his clothes in the laundry?"

"Oh," Maya said, putting her forehead down on the tabletop. "Guess that would make it sort of obvious."

Mia laughed. "Just don't leave anything I don't want to see laying around."

Maya groaned. "We won't."

Mia sighed and sat down in the chair opposite Maya. "My baby sister is growing up. Falling in love." She wiped an imaginary tear from her eye. "It makes me feel old."

Maya rolled her eyes. "I'm almost 25 years old, Mia, and I have a kid."

"I know, I'm just teasing."

"And," Maya continued, more quietly, "I'm not falling in love with him."

Mia raised an eyebrow. "Could've fooled me."

Maya scratched out another word on her assignment. "I'm not falling in love with him, Sis. I'm already in love with him. It's… a weird feeling. But nice."

Mia smiled gently. "Have you told him that yet?"

"No."

"You'll find the right time, I'm sure. And I think he probably feels the same way."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Not many guys would stick around as long as he has unless he felt the same, not to mention take such a shining to their partner's kid. He seems to really be trying, so that Misty will like him. Where is Misty by the way? And Phoenix for that matter?"

"He took her to the park," Maya told her.

"You let him take her by himself?"

"Yes," Maya said, looking up from her paper again. "Why not? I trust him, and Misty loves him."

"Oh, I'm not worried about it, I just thought you'd want to be there with them."

"I need to get this assignment done. Nick said he'd take her out so I could have some peace and quiet. He tries to help me but then she distracts him and they end up making more noise together than if Misty were just playing by herself. But he can't say no to her either." She smiled. "So they went out to run themselves down."

"That's sweet." She slapped her knees and stood up. "Well, I'm heading to Diego's. Have fun tonight."

"Can't you just say 'see you later' like a normal person?" Maya said, rolling her eyes but smiling. "Bye, Sis."

About half an hour after Mia left, Maya was just finishing up her paper when the front door opened and Phoenix and Misty came in. She was perched high up on his shoulders, and he lifted his arms to lift her over his head and set her back on the floor. She ran to Maya.

"Mommy!"

"Hey baby, did you have fun?"

"Yeah! Nick is funny," she said. She'd taken to calling him Nick as well.

"Is he? Why? What did he do?"

"He got stuck in the slide."

Maya laughed and Phoenix pouted at her. "I didn't get stuck I was just—"

"You were stuck," Misty confirmed.

"Okay, fine, I got stuck. But with Misty's help, I'm fine now."

He approached Maya as well, leaning down to give her a quick kiss in greeting. They weren't hiding their real relationship from Misty anymore, and she was used to seeing them show affection in front of her.

"Did you get your stuff done?" he asked, taking a seat where Mia had previously been. Misty crawled up onto his lap.

Maya closed her notebook in answer. "I got everything outlined, now I just need to type it up, but I can save that for tomorrow. It's not due until the end of the week, I just wanted to get a head start so I could spend more time with you two."

"Is Mia staying at Diego's again?" Phoenix asked hopefully.

She smirked at him. "Yes, she is."

Misty leaned her head back to look up at him. "That means you're staying, right Nick?"

He smiled down at her. "Yep."

"Yay! Mommy, are you going to play with us?"

"Of course. I'm done my work so I can play with you all night!"

Misty bounced excitedly as Maya packed away her notebook and textbooks.

"What do you want to do first?"

They'd spent the rest of the day with Misty, playing games inside, reading, and going to the park once more. She never got enough of the park and she wasn't a shy little girl, so she always seemed to make a new friend. By the time they got home the sun was setting and she was yawning, so they took her upstairs to bed together. Misty begged Phoenix to read her a story, telling him he did better voices than mommy, which Maya pretended to be offended by. Halfway through the book she'd chose, she was fast asleep.

Phoenix wrapped an arm around Maya's waist as they walked from Misty's room and instead of going back down to the living room, he led her down the hall into her bedroom where he quietly closed the door behind them. When he turned back around, Maya was smiling, waiting. He took a step forward and gathered her into his arms before crushing his lips against hers. There was enough daylight still outside from the setting sun for the room to be illuminated just enough that they were able to see the clothes coming off, and the creamy skin against slightly more tanned. They fell into bed together as the last rays of the sun were setting.

Phoenix woke up early the next morning with Maya clinging to him. Her bed was small but they slept so closely together that it didn't make much of a difference. He managed to squirm his way out of her grasp and out of bed without waking her so he could pull his pants back on and go take a shower before she got up and demanded use of the bathroom.

He showered and dressed in a spare outfit he kept at the Fey residence for nights like this without Maya banging on the door or forcing her way into the shower with him. He loved her but shower sex wasn't his forte.

Maya was still asleep in bed when he reentered the bedroom, the lumpy comforter bunched up around her waist so her feet and part of her legs could peek out the bottom. Besides that all he could see was a bundle of her hair thrown over her pillow. Her hair was so long and thick, it went absolutely everywhere. She'd often wear it in a loose braid for bed, but last night she wasn't too worried about doing her hair. It didn't bother him anyway. He loved it. He loved everything about her. Her smooth, creamy skin, her brown eyes, her beautiful hair. But more than her looks he loved her. She was fun to be around, but she knew when it was time to be serious. She was determined and smart, not to mention a great mother. And he loved Misty too. He wouldn't give either of them up for anything, not anymore. He hadn't even known Maya for a full year yet, and their relationship had only blossomed into this deeper emotional bond over the past few months, but he was sure of his feelings.

He wanted to crawl back into bed with her, and was about to, when a pile of dirty clothes that were thrown in a corner caught his eye. It looked like Maya had been sorting through the pile for laundry. He didn't notice it before, too focused on Maya and then the shower. The grey t-shirt lying on top of the pile made him do a double take. It was a t-shirt from Ivy University. He knew that Maya had been in university before getting pregnant with Misty, but she never mentioned that she'd gone to the same university as he had before he transferred. He found it odd that she never mentioned that.

An old university t-shirt shouldn't have bothered him as much as it did. It was just a relic from Maya's college days, before she had Misty. She probably just used it as a comfy t-shirt to wear to bed or to clean the house in… But then why did it look so big? It wasn't a woman's shirt, and was definitely too large for Maya's small frame.

Curious, he stepped over to the pile to pull it out from the other clothes. He held it up by the shoulder seams. It was old now, and thinned out with age, the letters of the black Ivy U logo starting to fade. Nothing much seemed out of the ordinary. He shrugged to himself and went to drop it back on the floor when his finger snagged in a tear near the collar, separating a piece of the collar from the shirt itself.

He felt his stomach tighten. Back when he was still at Ivy University he had a t-shirt exactly like this, tear and all. It had gone missing. He never could remember where he'd put it. He'd searched his locker at the university's gym, his backpack, his laundry, his dresser drawers. Eventually he'd come to the conclusion that someone must have stolen it out of the dryer before he'd been able to pick up his laundry in the shared laundry room of his dormitory. Why someone would steal a random t-shirt that they could buy from the university's store for twenty bucks he wasn't quite sure, but it was the only explanation he could think of for why it had gone missing.

He looked back over at Maya, who had shifted slightly so her head was uncovered partially by the blankets, and Phoenix's eyes widened as it came back to him. The memory hit him so suddenly he felt like he needed to sit down. The closest spot was the bed, and he flopped down onto it beside Maya, back facing her, still holding the shirt in his hands. How had he not remembered her? Her hair was shorter back then and she'd looked more like a teenager than a 21 year old at the time, but he supposed having a child would age one a little. But she really wasn't that different. So why had she slipped his mind so easily? Was it even possible that he would meet her again all these years later and actually fall in love with her?

She had been so pretty. When he met her at the bar that night he'd been surprised a girl like her was even bothering to talk to a guy like him. When she led him from the bar and asked where his dorm was he'd been almost giddy, but kept telling himself not to get too excited. She would change her mind, or they'd get to the dorm and it would all be a big prank set up by one of his buddies, but nothing like that happened. She'd kissed him and they took turns undressing each other and they'd had sex, Maya purring in his ear how good it was and he doubting her the entire time. She wasn't his first but he hadn't had that much practice. And he knew now that it was irresponsible but they hadn't used a condom either. He remembered Maya telling him she was on birth control and how if they could be honest with each other about whether or not they were 'clean', they could do it without. Neither of them had lied but he still cringed to think about what could have happened if either of them had been the untrustworthy sort.

He didn't remember falling asleep with her still in his bed, but he did remember waking up the next morning to find her gone. Apparently with his t-shirt still on. A few weeks later he'd had murder charges filed against him and Maya's own sister had defended him. Neither of them even knew.

Maya rolled over to her other side and he felt her hand touch his back lightly. "Nick?" she mumbled into the blankets. "Lay down. Misty won't be waking up for a while."

Oh God… Misty. Misty who just turned four. Misty who would have been born when Maya was 21. Misty with that black hair and those blue eyes. He swallowed thickly. But Maya said she was on birth control, and there were lots of guys out there with black hair and blue eyes. Hell even Maya had black hair, that gene could have come from her. But something told him that wasn't right.

"Maya," he whispered hoarsely.

Her hand rubbed at his back again. "Hm?"

"Did you happen to go to Ivy University before you dropped out?"

Her hand froze and fell away from him. "I did. Why?"

"You never told me you went to the same university as I did."

Though he couldn't see her, he felt movement and imagined her shrugging. "I didn't think it was that important. I dropped out before even finishing my degree to have Misty, you know that."

He turned around on the bed so he could look at her. Her eyes flicked to the shirt in his hand and he saw an inkling of something, possibly fear, in them. "Did you happen to meet a guy at a bar one night, fuck him, and then steal his shirt the next morning?"

Maya swallowed and he saw tears starting to well in her eyes. She nodded silently.

He took a deep breath. "Did you tell him that you were on birth control, even though you weren't? Did he get you pregnant, Maya? Did he get you pregnant and you never bothered to let him know that he was going to have a kid?!"

Maya sat up in bed quickly as his voice got louder. "Nick, calm down, please! I swear it's not like that."

"Then explain it to me because as far as I can tell I've met you before and I have a fucking daughter because of it, Maya. And I didn't know!"

"I was on birth control," she said, hands grasping for his, "but I was having a rough semester. I had just broken up with a boyfriend, I had so many assignments due. I was really stressed out and I—"

"What, Maya?"

"I may have missed a few of my pills," she admitted. "But I swear I didn't realize it when I was with you! I didn't notice until it was too late to get a Plan B pill and when I found out for sure that I was pregnant, I couldn't find you anywhere. I looked, Nick, but it was like you vanished. Now I know that it was because you transferred schools, and I didn't get any information from you that night. I didn't even know your name. I had no way to contact or find you."

He pressed his lips together, forming a thin line. "So Misty really is…?"

Maya nodded. "Yes, she's yours. Please, Nick. You can hate me for not telling you but please, don't hate her."

"I could never hate her," he said calmly. "I didn't even need to know that she's my daughter for me to think of her as one. I love her." A tear he'd been trying to hold in escaped and slipped down his cheek. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?" he asked. "For almost a whole year you've know, and you said nothing."

"I'm so sorry, Nick," Maya said, tearful now herself. "I was scared. If I had told you right off the bat that I knew who you were, that you had a daughter you'd never met, what would you have done? I didn't know you then. I didn't know what you were like. For all I knew you would have skipped town the next day. Misty is the most important person in my life and I needed to be sure—"

"Sure of what?"

"That you would love her, without feeling obligated to, and without resentment. To be honest, I didn't expect to fall in love with you when I accepted that first date. I just wanted to get to know the man who fathered my child as a person, not a college memory, and maybe that my daughter would get to know him too, through one way or another." She wiped her tears. "But I did fall in love with you."

He couldn't say it back. Not now, not with everything happening. It wasn't that he didn't love her back, he just couldn't find it in him to say anything more. Maya took his silence for denial, and choked out an angry sob. "What about you, anyway? You fucked me too, Nick. You said yes, you let me come back to your dorm room, but not even four years later and you couldn't recognize me? Just how often did you take girls back to your room for you not to be able to remember? That stupid t-shirt was what jogged your memory? Really? After a year of knowing me, nothing even felt familiar?"

"I don't know why, Maya," he admitted. "I was young and stupid and as beautiful as you are, I was probably so focused on the sex that I didn't pay that much attention to you as a person. And with the murder charges not even a month later, and then studying for the Bar exam after that, I forgot all about you. That's unfair, I know. You have Misty, a constant reminder of me, and I was just out living my life, not thinking one bit about that girl I took home that one night."

"You're right, Nick. I thought about you constantly. Every time I looked into her eyes I'd be reminded of you. But I'm glad your life was going so swell while I laboured bringing her into this world and was there for her while she grew up."

"That's not fair, Maya," he growled. "I didn't know. I would have been around if I'd known. It's not your fault that you couldn't find me, I know, but if you had been able to, I would have been there. I wish I was."

Maya clenched the comforter in her fists. "So what now?"

He sighed. "I think I need to go home for a few days and think about things."

Maya didn't meet his eyes as he stood up. "What about Misty?"

"Tell her I'm sick or something. I will be back to see her. I don't plan on abandoning her a second time, whether the first was intentional or not."

Maya nodded and said no more. She sat on the bed while he gathered his extra clothes and bathroom items, and didn't move until she heard the front door close with his exit.

Maya didn't hear from Phoenix for two weeks. She avoided the office in case he decided to show up for work, and he didn't call or stop by the house. She was worried he was lying about not abandoning Misty, but she didn't think he would do that. He just needed time was all.

What made the silence from him harder was Misty's continuous questions about why Nick hadn't shown up to play with her for so long. The sickness excuse only lasted a few days, even Misty knew that most people weren't sick for two weeks straight. Maya knew he needed some space, but even if he didn't want anything to do with her anymore, he needed to come see Misty soon.

Mia seemed to know something was up. She started sleeping at home again, maybe seeing that Phoenix's things from the bathroom had disappeared, but she didn't ask Maya. When Maya wanted to talk about it, she would. Asking sooner than that would only get her an eye roll or the cold shoulder.

Once Saturday of the second week of silence from Phoenix hit, Maya did ask.

"Hey Sis?"

"Yeah?" She was standing at the stove cooking herself some eggs and bacon. Misty was sitting in the living room, watching TV.

"Has Nick been coming to work? Have you talked to him recently?"

Mia turned around to lean against the kitchen counter. "I was going to ask you if something happened. He took some vacation time, so I haven't seen him, but he's supposed to be coming in on Monday." She turned to flip her egg over. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Maya sighed. "Yeah…" Mia took a plate out of the cupboard and piled her eggs and bacon onto it, then sat down across from Maya. She looked at her, waiting for her to start. "We had a fight," Maya said.

"What about?"

"Well I guess it wasn't really a fight. He found something out. Something I'd been hiding from everyone. He was really upset with me for not telling him sooner."

Mia was cutting up her egg when she spoke. "Was it about the fact that Misty is his biological daughter?"

Maya looked up in surprise. "H-How did you know that?"

Mia smiled gently. "I didn't know for sure until now, but ever since seeing him with her on her birthday, I couldn't get over how similar they looked. I always thought Misty looked a lot like you, but seeing her with Phoenix was so strange, because she looks so much like him. I thought it was just coincidence but things started to piece together after that. Like how strange you were acting the night you met him, how when I defended him in court he was a student at Ivy U, the same school you went to. I couldn't believe it but it made sense."

Maya sighed. Mia had always been smart, able to piece together things with only the simplest of clues. That was why she was such a good lawyer. "He found out last night. He found a t-shirt I still had from that night on the floor and he recognized it. It was his from back then."

"You still had it?"

She nodded. "I kept it originally because it was the only thing I had from Misty's biological father. Before you hired him I didn't even know what his name was. I hid it in the bottom of my drawers for years, but when he and I started getting closer… well, I took it out again. I didn't think he would recognize it if he ever found it. He couldn't remember me, but that stupid t-shirt was what tipped him off."

"How did he take the news?" Mia asked, taking a bite of her toast.

"Not that well. He said it didn't matter that Misty was his biological daughter because he loved her anyway and he said he wouldn't abandon her, but he was mad at me for keeping it from him for so long. I've known the entire time I've been with him and never said anything. I just couldn't seem to find the right time. Things were going so good, I thought it was okay to just let it be."

"Hmm. I have to admit I don't know what I would have done in your situation. I can't really give you any good advice. Have you tried calling him?"

Maya shook her head. "No… I'm scared to."

"Maya, you still love him?"

"Yes, of course."

"Then you should call him."

"Okay. Sis… I have to tell you something else."

"What is it?"

Maya pursed her lips. How to say this. It had been a surprise to her too, though she didn't know why. These things did happen when you weren't careful.

"Spit it out, Maya, what is it?"

"Oh God…" she sighed. "I'm uh… I'm pregnant. Again."

Mia stopped with her fork halfway to her mouth and set it back down on her plate with a clank. "Seriously?"

Maya nodded. "I haven't been feeling well lately; the same sort of symptoms I had with Misty. So I took a test and it came back positive. I haven't gone to the doctor yet though."

"Maya, Maya, Maya. I thought you would have learned by now the importance of condoms," Mia said, shaking her head. She didn't seem angry though, not even disappointed, her words had a more teasing edge to them.

Maya fidgeted. "It was just one time, we didn't have any and it was supposed to be a safe day, you know."

Mia sighed. "There's always a chance, Maya. Now I really suggest you call him. This time you need to tell him right away. I'm going over to Diego's later. I'll even take Misty with me if you want, she hasn't seen him for a while."

Maya nodded. "Okay. That'll be good. Hopefully I can get Nick to meet me."

"Yeah… By the way, congratulations."

Maya smiled. "Thank you."

Once Mia had finished her breakfast and finished getting ready, she took Misty to go see her Uncle Diego. Maya wasted no time calling Phoenix's cell number. The first time, it went to voice mail, and she hung up without leaving a message. She tried a few minutes later and this time when it went to voice mail she did leave a message, simply asking him to call. The good news seemed to be that since the phone was ringing and not going straight to voice mail, he was probably screening her calls. If she left a message, maybe he would call back.

She gave it a half an hour and there was still no call back. A little angrier, she called again, and left another voice mail, asking him if he was going to go back on his promise not to abandon Misty, then said it was important she speak to him as soon as possible.

It only took five minutes after that for Phoenix to finally call her back.

He knocked when he arrived. Maya was expecting him to just walk in the way he'd gotten used to, but instead he knocked and she had to answer the door for him. He was standing on the porch with his hands stuffed in his pockets, dressed casually in jeans and a button up. He looked almost shy, or at the very least, embarrassed.

"Hey Nick," she said, as kindly as she could. "You didn't have to knock."

He shrugged. "I thought I should."

"Well, come in," she said, standing aside to let him enter. He waited for her to lead him before heading anywhere, so she brought him into the living room where they sat down together on the couch.

"Where's Misty?" he asked, looking around, realizing that the house was unusually quiet.

"Mia took her to Diego's so we could talk."

"Ah. I was hoping to see her."

"You will get to see her, Nick. She misses you."

"I'm sorry for not talking to you sooner," he said. "And for ignoring your first two calls. Would you believe I was sleeping?"

She raised an eyebrow. "It's the middle of the day."

"…Yeah? I'm on vacation."

She smiled. "Well you do look a little tired so I'll say I believe you."

"It's the truth though," he pouted.

"Are you still mad at me, Nick?" She didn't want to beat around the bush with this.

He shook his head. "No. I thought about what you said, about how you didn't know me or how I would react if you told me right away. I understand what you meant. It was better for you to wait, I just wish you hadn't waited that long." He smiled. "But at least I still got to spend time with her, even if I didn't know."

"So… What about us? I want you to know that when I said I fell in love with you, it was the truth. I wasn't pretending just for Misty's sake."

"I know," he said. "And I still feel the same way about you, Maya. I love you. So let's pretend this never happened, okay? I know now, and that's what matters. I want to be with both of you."

"All… three of us," she mumbled.

"Oh! Oh, right. Mia and you and Misty… Or, Pearls and you and Misty? Wait, I'm confused."

"Umm, you remember a month or so ago we didn't, you know, use protection?"

"Yeah…"

She smiled awkwardly and took his hand in hers. Gently she held it up to her stomach. "Congrats, you're going to be a dad.. again?"

His face was blank as he stared down at where she'd placed his hand. He looked back up at her. "Seriously?"

"Yeah, seriously. Shows how much we learned, huh?"

He let a breath out. "Wow. That's some news. I guess I should be happy you told me right away this time," he said, grinning at her.

Maya let out an incredulous laugh and reached over to punch him on the arm. "Shut up, jerk."

He grabbed her wrist and pulled her over onto his lap, wrapping his arms around her back. He captured her lips in a quick kiss, smiling against them. Maya patted his cheek, a little harder than was necessary.

"Ow…"

She stopped to rub his face instead. "You deserved that."

"Hmm, maybe."

She smiled. "So… this is good news then?"

"Yeah, I'd say so." He sighed. "How are you going to tell Misty that I'm her dad? Jeez, that sounds weird to say. "

Maya shrugged. "I'll just tell her the truth. I'll say that you were gone for a long time, and just got back. That's why you're here now. When she's older I'll tell her what really happened."

"Good idea. And hey, after this baby, we really have to plan these things out better."

"Must be weird for you. Finding out you're a dad to two different kids so close together. Hey, you didn't make a habit of taking girls home and having unprotected sex with them, right?"

He laughed. "Nah. They always took me home, because I'm such a catch."

"Pfft."

"Well, you seemed to think so."

She blew a raspberry at him. "Nick, seriously. You don't have any other illegitimate children running around out there do you?"

"No. You were the only one who told me she was on birth control and also trusted me enough not to think I'd lie about not having any STDs."

"You make it sound so bad."

"It was pretty bad, Maya. We were dumb. And apparently we're still really dumb," he said, caressing her belly again. "But things have worked out. I don't regret it."

Her hand was resting on his neck just below his ear, and her thumb stroked at his jawline. "Me neither. You know we might have to move in together eventually. Mia's been great for all these years but if I'm going to have another baby I should probably find somewhere else to live. Somewhere just for us. For our family."

"Yeah. My apartment isn't huge but we can always start there, if Misty and this little one here can share a room until we can find somewhere bigger. You wouldn't have to quit school again either. You need to finish what you started, and once you graduate you can get a job in the office."

"We'll be co-workers," she said. "My sister will be my boss though. Not that she doesn't already act like that anyway, so I guess it won't be much different."

"I won't be the lowest man on the totem pole anymore, at least."

She chuckled. "Right…"

They gazed at each other until Phoenix leaned forward to press his forehead against hers. "I love you, Maya," he murmured.

"I love you too, Nick."

"Are you sure you want to do this, dude? You're still so young. You have your whole life ahead of you!"

Phoenix rolled his eyes. "Why did I make you one of my groomsmen anyway, Larry? You suck at being supportive. It's a good thing I haven't doubted this even once since proposing or you'd really be freaking me out right now."

"I'm just saying. You're only 27. Whole life. Think of all the ladies you're going to miss out on."

"Larry, I love Maya. I'm quite ready to spend the whole life I have ahead of me with her. Besides have you ever known me to be any type of ladies' man? I'm lucky to have found one woman that wants to marry me."

Larry sighed and opened his mouth to argue more, but didn't get a word out before Edgeworth smacked him over the back of his head. "Larry, stop talking." He turned to Phoenix. "I think it's admirable, Wright. You have two children with her. You should marry her."

"Ugh. You're not much better, Edgeworth. I'm not marrying her because I think I should, I want to. Believe me, our kids being born out of wedlock is not something I ever worry about. It's 2020."

Phoenix was relieved when a knock came from the door and opened after a quick 'come in' from him. Mia entered the room with Misty in tow, and a little boy on her hip. Misty ran straight to Phoenix. "Daddy! You look so pretty!"

He laughed and lifted her up. "I look pretty? So do you!"

"Thank you! Daddy," she said, sighing wistfully, "Mommy looks really pretty too. You should come see her. She looks like a princess."

"I can't see her yet, sweetheart."

"Why not?"

"It's bad luck for the groom to see the bride before the wedding," he told her.

Edgeworth snorted. "Superstitious."

"You be quiet," Phoenix said, setting Misty back on the floor. She ran straight to Larry, giggling as he lifted her up. Edgeworth scowled at him. The two of them seemed to have a rivalry over who could be the better 'uncle', and somehow Larry was winning. Phoenix believed it had something to do with his immaturity. He and Misty got along so well because he genuinely enjoyed playing all her little games with her. She wasn't interested in Edgeworth's attempts at teaching her how to play chess. The only thing he was good for was reading.

"Wow, you clean up nice, Phoenix. And Misty is right, Maya looks beautiful," Mia said.

"Stop teasing me, or I may just say screw bad luck and go see her anyway."

Mia smiled and gently shook the little boy in her arms. "And what about this guy over here?" she said, reaching down to tickle him. "He's so handsome!"

His son, who Maya had insisted on naming Griffon despite Phoenix's attempt at telling her it would be weird for both father and son to be named after a mythical creature, squirmed in her arms. Phoenix reached forward to take him into his arms instead.

"Hey buddy. How are you?"

He was dressed in a tiny tux of his own and wasn't very happy about it. "No!" he said, instead of an answer. 'No' seemed to be one of his favourite words lately.

"Okay then," Phoenix said. "Just be a good boy throughout the ceremony, okay?"

"No!"

"Alright."

Mia laughed. Griffon was pretty well behaved, but resident babysitter Pearl was on duty and ready to remove any screaming children if need be. But Griffon loved Pearl, and if there was anyone who could keep him quiet so they could both enjoy the ceremony, it was her.

"Are you ready?" Mia asked as Phoenix set his son down on the floor to toddle around.

Phoenix nodded. "Yeah. I feel like I've been ready for a long time."

"Good." She sighed. "It'll be nice having you as a brother-in-law. I know you'll take care of my baby sister."

"She takes care of me more than I do her."

"Well, you'll take good care of each other, and your kids."

He nodded. "Right."

"We'll go now. The ceremony will be starting soon. Misty, let's go," she called. Misty dropped from Larry's arms and ran over to Griffon, taking his hand to lead him from the room with Mia.

"We'll go too, Wright," Edgeworth said. "Just to give you a few minutes alone before everything."

"Alright. See you guys out there."

Larry grinned at him and clapped him on the shoulder. "Hey man. Seriously this time, congrats. Maya's a catch."

"Thank you, Larry."

They left, leaving Phoenix alone in the room. He found he wasn't nervous. He was excited. He knew Maya would roll her eyes if she knew he was comparing it to being a lawyer, but it really did feel similar to the feeling he got before going into the courtroom. Maya liked her job in the office as a law clerk but she didn't really understand the love that he and Mia had for defending their clients in court.

There was another knock on his door a few minutes later, and he called them inside. He was shocked to see Maya standing in the doorway, in her white lace wedding dress, the sweeping train trailing behind her.

He got up right away and went to her. She even had her veil on already. "Maya! You look… breathtaking."

She smiled and stepped into the room. "So do you."

He shook his head. "Wait, I'm not supposed to see you yet. It's bad luck."

She waved the thought away. "If you seeing me in this dress before we're officially married is what's going to ruin our relationship, we probably shouldn't get married in the first place."

"Okay, you make a good point." He took her hands and brought her over to the lounge chair in the room to sit her down. "Why are you here though? You're not coming to tell me you've changed your mind, right?"

She laughed. "No. I'm just tired of standing in that stuffy room in this uncomfortable and hot dress while everyone fusses around me. I wanted to see you."

He grinned. "We're going to be married for the rest of our lives and you can't even wait until the ceremony on your actual wedding day to see me."

"What can I say, I miss you when you're not around."

"Everyone is going to be wondering where you are."

"And they won't even think to look in here," she said.

"You are truly a mastermind, Maya."

"I try." He stared at her, a soft smile on his face. Maya raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Nothing. I just can't get over how beautiful you look."

She reached forward to wrap her arms around his neck and leaned in to kiss him. "Mm, I can't wait for the honeymoon," she whispered once they'd pulled apart.

He smiled, forehead still pressed against hers. "I was thinking the same thing."

The room was quiet until the sound of people rushing around outside the door reached their ears. They heard Pearl speaking quickly to an unknown person. "We can't find the bride. She's gone missing! Oh, Mystic Maya, where did you go?!"

Maya snorted, trying to hold back her laughter. Phoenix couldn't help smiling too, though he gave her a faux disapproving look.

"Don't worry Pearl, I think I know where to find her."

"Uh oh," Maya muttered, right before Mia burst into the room.

"Maya! Of course you'd sneak over here to see him. You couldn't wait ten more minutes?"

Maya gripped his hand tightly in hers. "Nope."

Mia rolled her eyes. "Well, come on you two. It's time to start."

"Okay. We'll be there in a second," Maya said.

Mia nodded and closed the door again. Phoenix stood up and helped Maya to her feet, making sure the train of her dress wasn't going to be tread on. He held her hands again and gave her another quick kiss. "You ready?"

She nodded. "Yeah. Let's go get married."

I couldn't resist naming Phoenix's son after another mythical creature. One of the only other ones that really even works as a name, to be honest.

Phoenix and Maya were so irresponsible in this fic, please don't follow their examples lmao.

And fun fact: this is the first time I've ever written Diego/Godot into one of my stories, and he only had the tiniest part, pfft.