At last, the flashback and story come to a close...

ON WITH THE SHOW!

Rei Ryghts: Rookie Attorney

The Ten-Year Turnabout

By Derald Snyder

Epilogue

March 30, 11:27 AM

District Court

Defendant Lobby No. 1

"RRRAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" Paul Peterman cried out suddenly. "Finally, after all these years... I'm finally freeeeeeeee!"

"Eeeep!" Rei squeaked. "D-don't scream like th-that! You hurt m-my ears!"

"Sorry 'bout that..." the fisherman muttered. "It's just, I'd never thought this day'd actually come! It's like I'm dreamin'... OW! What'd'ya pinch me for?!"

"T-to confirm you're n-not d-dreaming," Rei pointed out. Just then, the door opened, a tall boy with black hair running in, dressed in fisherman's gear.

"Pa!" he shouted. "I saw th' verdict! I'm so glad yer finally innocent!"

Peterman's eyes went wide on seeing the young man. "...Luke? My boy, is that you?! You... you've gone and grown up on me, son..." Tears started to well in his eyes...

"Well, it has been ten years since w'last saw each other," Luke responded. "But only b'cause Ma wouldn't let m'see ya... But no matter what she said, I never believed it, not for a moment. I knew in m'heart you didn't kill that man... Ya yell and scream and holler, but ya never hurt anyone..."

"Ha... ha ha ha..." Paul laughed as he removed his glasses to wipe his eyes. "I don't think I've ever been so happy in m'life..."

"I'm glad to hear that, Mr. Peterman," Michael Millhouse said as he walked into the lobby. "It gladdens me to know that I was able to set right this gross miscarriage of justice that my mentor inflicted on you..."

"Yeah?" said the fisherman as he slid his glasses back on, a hint of his anger returning. "Well maybe ya oughta learn from his mistake, so YOU don't blackmailed by some sleaze lawyer! If ya got any skeletons in your closet, it'd be best to come clean with 'em now, so they can't be used against ya!"

"Trust me, there are no skeletons in my closet, to my knowledge," Millhouse replied.

"So can I take Pa home now?" Luke asked.

"Not quite yet," the prosecutor shook his head. "There's still some paperwork to be filed and processed... but I promise, by tomorrow afternoon, your father should be a free man once again."

"Hmph," Peterman snorted. "Well, I s'pose after ten years, what's one more day?"

"That's the spirit, Pa!" Luke nodded with a wide smile. "And, ah, Miss Ryghts... seriously, I gotta thank ya for takin' on my Pa's case. No other lawyer woulda had the gumption ta do what you just did... sending' one of yer own to prison! I always thought lawyers were a bunch sleazes who covered for each other..."

"W-well, I'm n-not exactly th-the most sociable p-person t-to begin with..." Rei mutted as she tapped her index fingers together. Raising her head up, she continued, "But there's no way in hell I would associate with a pathetic maggot like that Casey Dodge!" The sudden change caused Luke to take a step back in shock...

"You're doing it again, Miss Ryghts..." Millhouse sighed and shook his head.

"Huh? Oh no! I-I'm so sorry! I d-didn't mean it!"

"In the meantime... Mr. Luke, was it?" the prosecutor turned to Paul's son. "Maybe you should shop for some fresh clothes for your father to change into when he is released tomorrow... And I promise to call you when he's let out."

"Okay, sure thing!" Luke nodded. "Don't you worry, Pa! I'll be right there t'take ya back t'my home, and then ya can start gettin' yer life back together! See ya tomorrow!" He gave his father a hug before walking out of the lobby.

"See ya, tomorrow, son..." Peterman nodded, a single tear streaming down his cheek. "Miss Ryghts... I'm sorry fer bein' so disagreeable with ya, but I really do thank you from the bottom of m'heart. You gave me my life back, and I'll never forget it..."

Now it was Rei who was on the verge of tears. "Y-you're welcome... I'm g-glad I was able t-to do something g-good for once..."

"Indeed, you did a splendid job," Bartholomew spoke as he entered the lobby. "Perhaps now there will be some more clients who will be willing to take a chance with you..."

"Yeah, what's th'story on that, anyway?" Peterman asked in mild confusion. "Did she do somethin' really bad in the past or something?"

"I d-don't like t-to t-talk about it," Rei shook her head. "Let's j-just say I was let off easy b-because I had n-no recollection o-of what h-happened..."

"What, were you drunk or something?"

"More along the lines of 'drunk on evil power', that was forced on her," Bart clarified. "Fortunately the CPUs managed to put a stop to her and bring her back to her senses..."

"THAT bad?!" the fisherman's eyes went wide. "Sheesh, you really did get off easy then..."

"Anyway, I think it's time for you go back to your cell... for the last time," Millhouse stated. "And I'll get on the paperwork for your release as soon as I can..."

"You better," Peterman grumbled. "C'mon, bailiff, let's go..." Said bailiff just nodded as he led the now-innocent man out of the room.

"Still, when you said this was a can of worms, I think you actually might've understated it, Mike," Bart said. "Once it gets out to the public that Clarence Robarts was using a false identity, there's likely going to be a bunch of prisoners clamoring for new trials... they'll argue that the judge ruled in absence of a genuine prosecuting attorney..."

"Bah!" Millhouse scoffed at this. "Even if my mentor used a false name, he was as genuine a prosecutor as any other! His work was impeccable and unassailable, save this case... if any of the felons he convicted wish to bring their challenges, I'll gladly take them on for his sake... Even if I have to spend the rest of my career doing so!"

"I wish I h-had y-your p-passion, Mr. Millhouse..." Rei sighed.

"Oh, I think you definitely showed some passion in court today," the prosecutor disagreed. "But like you said, just take things one case at a time, and you shouldn't get overwhelmed. Anyway, I should get back to the office now... But even if it did potentially damage my mentor's reputation, I thank you for helping me uncover the truth. And I look forward to seeing where your career takes you from here..."

The former goddess could only squeak as she blushed red. "Th-thank you, Mr. Millhouse...! A-and I hope y-you d-don't get overwhelmed y-yourself, with all th-those p-potential ch-challenges..."

"I appreciate that, Miss Ryghts," the cobalt-haired man nodded with a slight smile. "I'll see you two later, then." With that, he turned and exited the lobby.

"Sh-shall we g-go back to our office, then?" Rei asked her boss.

"Indeed," Bartholomew nodded.

April 1, 9:27 AM

Samson & Co. Law Offices

(It's been a couple days, and it seems like nothing's changed from my perspective,) Rei thought to herself as she filled out legal paperwork. (I didn't even get paid for defending Mr. Peterman... Of course, virtue is it's own reward, but still...)

Just then, the door opened, Bartholomew striding in with a smile on his face, a rolled-up newspaper under one arm. "Rei! You'll never guess what the headlines are saying today..."

"Wh-what's that?" the former villain asked.

Her boss responded by unrolling aforementioned newspaper and holding the front page up to her, the main headline reading: '10-YEAR OLD VERDICT OVERTURNED!' Underneath, a smaller headline read: 'REI RYGHTS EXPOSES CORRUPT LAWYER.' "I think this will help quite a bit in repairing your reputation, don't you think?"

"I-I'm in the p-papers?!" Rei squeaked, blushing. "I-I mean, wow, that's g-great..." Just then, there was a soft knock behind Bartholomew, the man turning, revealing a female NPC.

"E-excuse me..." the woman stuttered nervously. "A-are you Rei Ryghts?"

"Y-yes ma'am!" the lawyer acknowledged, bowing her head. "W-wait... you w-want t-to see ME, not my b-boss?!"

"W-well, I read about your court case in the paper..." She gestured to the newspaper Bartholomew was holding. "S-so I thought, if anyone could save my father, you could! They're all saying he bashed his partner's skull in, but even though he's got a face only my mother and grandmother could love, he's got a heart as big as Lady Vert's chest...! H-he would never...!"

"All right, calm down, young lady," Bartholomew cut in, placing a hand on the NPC's shoulder. "I'm sure Rei would be more than happy to take your case... isn't that right?" He gave a knowing wink to his employee.

"Y-yes...! Yes, of course!" Rei smiled and nodded happily. "W-well, first things first, c-could you start f-from the b-beginning...?"

The NPC nodded as she began to explain what had happened, Bart backing off a short distance, his face beaming with pride...

October 31, 7:27 PM

Lowee Basilicom

Reading Room

Rei opened her eyes as she came back to the present. "S-so, that's how my law c-career really got started... I started g-getting a lot more c-cases after that verdict, a-and eventually g-got a s-steady enough income t-to move into my own apartment... I-it's a little small, and c-cold, but it s-serves me well enough..."

"Well, why do you think I offered you a vacation in Leanbox after you cleared little Nepgear of terrorism charges?" Vert pointed out.

"Yeah, and because of that, you were scouted by Steve Iceberg to play the villain in his Revengers movie," Noire observed. "Which put you in the perfect position to defend K-Sha when she was accused of manslaughter..."

"Fate really does work in mysterious ways, huh?" Uni appended.

"Yeah, well, she's the main character of this fan-fiction series, is it really that big a surprise?" Neptune spoke up. "Anyway..." she turned to face Blanc. "I'm kinda tore up about the court system here, as Rei described it... it really seems way unfair to anyone falsely accused... I mean, only three days for a trial? And the judge decides the verdict? What if the judge himself is corrupt or something? Then the defendant doesn't stand a chance! At least we have jury trials in Planeptune... Not to mention that poor detective always being used as a scapegoat..."

"U-umm, Snooper actually g-got a pay raise f-for his work on th-that case," Rei spoke up. "Th-though it d-didn't last v-very long..."

"...As much as I hate to admit it, you do have a point, Neptune," Blanc sighed. "Maybe I could start using jury trials for some particularly high-profile cases... Though I'd probably have to leave Rei out of them, so there's no appearance of bias..." Looking over at the horned lawyer, she continued, "Though, Rei has already helped a lot by exposing some blatantly corrupt prosecutors in the system... I've already fired several of their sorry asses, and the rest are shaping up as a result. As for Michael Millhouse, I recently had him elevated to Chief Prosecutor for his outstanding work. Clarence Robarts, or rather, Jason Bork certainly taught him well..."

"Well, I guess that's a step in the right direction..." Noire stated. "But how could you let it get that bad in the first place?"

The flat-chested CPU heaved a sigh at this. "Well, you know me, Noire... my preferred solutions to problems is to bash them in with my hammer. But I know that doesn't work in the legal system, so I just let the 'experts' handle that..."

"Only for said 'experts' to take full advantage of their goddess' ignorance..." Vert observed. "At least you're doing something about it now... in Leanbox, we've always presumed the defendant innocent until proven guilty... at least as long as I've been goddess, anyway."

"That's how it should be," Noire agreed.

"I agree," Mina Nishizawa spoke up. "I remember waking up in the hospital after that thief bashed me over the head with that clock-statue... I don't remember what happened, but when they told me Neptune was being charged with assault, I knew immediately that couldn't be right... thank goodness Miss Rei set things to right."

"Yeah, I think anyone with half a brain knew those charges were bogus," Uni put in her two cents. "Just like I knew Nepgear could never use a mech suit to wreak havoc on her own nation... Good thing the jury agreed. Just wish I could've gotten over there sooner..."

"Well, I appreciate you giving me support after the trial was over," Nepgear said.

"Hey Neptune, catch!" Ram's voice was heard, the purple-haired CPU instinctively turning and reaching to catch the object that was tossed to her-

-only to drop it and scream in terror. "AUUUUGGGHH! The eggplant! I touched it! Now I'm all infected! I gotta wash myself before my eyes turn purple!"

"OBJECTION!" Your eyes are already purple!" Rei declared.

"AUUUUGGHHH! It's already started! I gotta wash before I turn into a purple people eater or somethiiiiing!" Neptune ran off, still babbling and screaming.

Meanwhile, Ram was about doubled over with laughter from her successful prank. "HAHAHAHAHAHA! That was so worth it! Oh, the look on her face...!" Her laughter abruptly died as a shadow fell over her, the CPU Candidate looking up to see the stern face of Mina Nishizawa.

"That wasn't very nice of you, Ram... hmm?" the Oracle paused in her scolding as she felt something malevolent behind her... Turning, she and Ram saw Nepgear standing there, a dark aura surrounding her, her eyes showing no pupils or sclera, only a deep purple glow. "M-Miss Nepgear?!"

"How dare you..." the lilac-haired goddess growled in a voice that sounded completely inhuman. "I only meant to scare my sister... but now you have crossed the line..."

"Oh c-come on!" Ram babbled in terror. "I-it was just a joke! I-it's not l-like Neptune was actually hurt o-or anything...!"

"Miss Nepgear, there is no need to go overboard here!" Mina insisted nervously. "I humbly request that you leave Ram's discipline to me..."

Nepgear paused for a moment, only to raise up her right arm... "Gehaburn, come forth." The goddess-slaying blade materialized in her hand in swirl of dark purple energy...

"AHHHHHHH!" Ram screamed. "I forgot she was able to get that weapon in Megadimension VII! Someone help me!"

"No, Nepgear! Don't do it!" Uni cried as she grabbed her friend around the waist.

"GET OFF ME!" the CPU Candidate roared, emitting a wave of energy as she transformed to HDD, knocking everyone down! Thankfully for Ram, she landed nearby the door, quickly scrambling out of the room as Nepgear pursued.

"Run, Ram! Run for your life!" Rom yelled after them.

"Shouldn't you stop her, Blanc?!" Vert inquired desperately. "Before you lose a sister?!"

"D-do you seriously think I can s-stop her w-when she's like that?!" Blanc retorted, sweating profusely. "Wait! Rei, maybe you could...!"

"M-me?!" The horned woman gasped, before heaving a sigh and invoking her HDD transformation. "Alright, fine. But you owe me one for this, worm!" With that, she flew off... not long after, a *crash!* was heard as Nepgear was launched out of a nearby window, then came the sounds of explosions and weapons clashing.

"Well, that was a pretty scary way to end a Halloween party..." Noire observed. "I just hope Neptune can calm her sister down when she's done cleaning off the eggplant..."

Everyone else in the room either nodded or muttered in agreement...

~*Fin*~

Conquest!Nepgear is truly terrifying... O_O Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed!