Satiation

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What do you feed a girl who's always hungry?

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The day had already turned to twilight when Phoenix Wright and Maya returned to the Wright and Co. Law Offices. All things considered, it had been a dull day, and Phoenix had spent most of it showing Maya some of the places around the city she hadn't yet seen. Not surprisingly, the first thing Maya said upon walking through the door was "I'm hungry." Pearl was off in Hazakure Temple for a few days, and Phoenix would have been fine with only serving for two if Maya didn't already eat enough for three by herself.

Maya threw herself down on the small couch in the lounge and groaned longingly. "Niiiiick…whatta we got to eat?"

"Let me check the mini-fridge," Phoenix said from across the room. "Hmmmmm…I could cook us up some hot dogs."

"Mmm," Maya said. "Sounds good. I could go for a couple."

"A couple? Maya, before we left, you already had three!"

"So?"

"So we only have two left!" Phoenix said as he put the last two dogs in the microwave. "And besides, you don't need to eat that much. I'll get you the meatiest one I can muster, but only one."

"Meatiest"? Why the hell did I say that?

"Oh, come on! I'm a growing girl, remember?" She winked at the back of Phoenix's spiky head. "What else am I going to eat to get big and strong? Spinach?"

"Uh, sure," Phoenix said. "Why, when I was a little kid, I could down three cans of spinach in under a minute!" Phoenix shuddered and tried not to think about the horrible vegetable-eating days of his youth. Not having to choke down the green leafy stuff anymore was a mark of his manhood.

"Well, maybe spinach's for you, but I'd gladly pay ya Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday for a coupla hamburgers today." Maya chuckled and smiled. Phoenix turned back to see her lounging on the couch, having already kicked off her (his, actually; she was just borrowing them) dirty old basketball shoes.

It was that very interesting time between cases for the duteous employees of Wright and Co.'s law practice. Aside from intentionally nondescript paperwork with noticeable absence of description, there was not much going on around the office, and most of Phoenix's day consisted of trying to read, watching TV (usually with Maya, the reason he could neither work nor read), or doing something else, most often in the company of Maya. She tended not to do anything "productive," but, Phoenix had admitted to himself, she did brighten up the office whenever she was around.

Maya sighed dramatically and threw her head back against the couch, sinking into the quicksand, maybe never to rise again.

That was the thing about Maya. That was the thing, Phoenix thought as the microwave finally dinged. No matter what the situation, Maya always smiled. Whether it was settling for only one hot dog or being accused of murder, Maya always found a smile somewhere inside her, no matter how dire the situation. Even when her shoes were five sizes too big.

Phoenix bunned up the two dogs and brought them over to the couch where Maya sat, grinning from ear to ear. Always. Sometimes Phoenix thought about asking her how. How she could always find a smile lying around somewhere even when he knew she'd much rather break down and cry. She probably didn't even know the answer herself, Phoenix thought. No matter what happened, she was always here. Everyone else had come and gone and went to tend to their own affairs, but Maya? She took being a friend and having fun seriously. Maybe it was only because of Mia, or maybe because she didn't have a real home to go back to. Phoenix wondered if Maya ever thought of the Wright and Co. Law Office as her home.

"Mmm, looks good," Maya said as she took her hot dog off the plate and started eating. "Tastes good, too. I guess hot dogs are one food you can't mess up too badly, huh?"

Phoenix chuckled meekly. He fell back against the couch next to her and started eating. "Yeah," he said, without paying attention. Maya. Sometimes it occurred to Phoenix just how close he had come to losing her. Maybe that was his fault, and maybe it wasn't. Maybe he wasn't quite as strong as she was, but he had to smile anyway. A lawyer is someone who smiles no matter how bad it gets, in victory or in defeat, in court or outside. That was what Mia had said, but it was her little sister—a medium—who really drove the point home. Maya was stronger—stronger than him, stronger than the world, and if anyone even tried to call her weak, he was more than ready to stand up and…disagree. With their face. Yeah.

"Remember that one time you tried to cook us a T-Bone steak?" Maya said. "You ended up setting off the fire alarm, remember? That was what I like to call a classic 'Nick Moment'!"

"Really," Phoenix said, nibbling on his hot dog. "I'm getting really tired of seeing T-Bone steaks. But, you know, at least we don't have to resort to noodles. I swear, if I had to eat instant ramen as much as Gumshoe does, I think I'd have nightmares about giant spaghetti monsters or something."

"Mmm, spaghetti. I haven't had spaghetti in a while. Hey, we should have some one of these nights! Maybe we could have a festival and convince those guys at Lordly Tailor to give us that sign."

"Hey, Maya," Phoenix said after a few seconds of silence. Somewhere in the back of his mind the image of Maya's crying face projected onto the back of his eyelids and stuck there.

I don't want to see you cry. Is something like that going to happen again? You don't deserve to suffer like that again, Maya...

"Hm? What's up? You sound so serious. That hot dog no good or something?" Maya grinned. "I could have told you we should have gotten hamburgers!"

"No, no, that's not—what I was going to say." Phoenix could almost imagine the sweat comically rolling down his face.

Urk. I feel dumb. I think my brain is turning to mush…

"Well, Nick? What's up?"

"Well, I was thinking..."

"That's a first." Maya chuckled.

Ouch. That stung.

"Do you remember when we first met? It was on a night like this, in this room. Back then, I didn't even know who you were. You looked so scared and alone, and I didn't know what to do. At the time I felt so helpless, but now that I think about it, that's the reason things have turned out the way they did."

Didn't I think you had broken in or something?

"Wow, you remember that?" Maya said, inhaling the rest of her hot dog. "That seems like so long ago now. If you hadn't come to my rescue back then, who knows what would have happened to me. But…what made you think of that?"

The office had gone completely dark, and the only thing separating the ace attorney's office from the world of pure blackness was the moonlight sifting through the window. Phoenix looked over at Maya.

"I don't know. But—maybe…what would have happened if we had never met? Or if I hadn't been able to save you the first time you were on trial? What then?"

Yeah, she's my assistant…my only assistant. When it comes down to it, being a lawyer is a pretty lonely endeavor. Damn it…

"Hey, Nick…"

"To be honest, sometimes I wonder if I could have won all those cases without your help. If I had lost even one of those cases and let one of my clients be declared guilty…" Phoenix sighed and leaned back. Maya looked at him seriously and didn't wait for him to consider finishing the sentence.

"Oh, c'mon...Don't sell yourself short," Maya said softly. "You're too tough on yourself. Sis believed in you, didn't she? And even so…hey, I believe in you! You're a great lawyer. Well, I mean, sometimes you mess up and do something stupid…or say something stupid…"

Gee, thanks, Maya.

"But you always win, right? Well, for the good guys, at least. Defender of justice! The legend, Phoenix Wright, king of kings! Look on my cases, ye mighty! …and stuff like that." Maya smiled and tilted Phoenix's face toward her with her fingers. Gulp. She was going to say something embarrassing next, he knew.

"Hehe. Why else would I have brought you home, what with all your piddling on the couch? Someone should give you a good spanking; that would clear the problem right up!"

Double gulp.

Does she even know—what she's saying? That really sounds...oh man…

"Anyway, don't think so hard about it," Maya said, in a voice so familiarly teasing that Phoenix almost couldn't believe she said it so tenderly. "Cheer up! Come on, you got me out of a few jams, but I'm fine now. You don't have to worry about being lost without me. I can draw you a map if you want!" She smiled and tugged a little on his arm.

But I am worried. I don't want to lose you. If I couldn't look at you with my head held high …

"Hey, I'm gonna go see if there's anything interesting on TV," Maya said, and started walking towards the other side of the room. "Maybe I'll see if I can find a rerun of this 'Kids Masterpiece Theatre', to see why Pearly likes it so much."

"Hold it!"

Maya stopped, next to the long counter where Phoenix occasionally pretended to do actual work. He set aside the rest of his hot dog and walked over to Maya, who looked almost as confused as he did. His shoulders were like lead weights and his mind still felt like oats. Phoenix put a hand on Maya's shoulder and tried to make his words not sound like soup. "Maya…thanks. That's all I wanted to say. Um—that's about it."

No, no, no, can't think that! Phoenix thought as scandalous images poured into his mind like lemonade, bittersweet, overflowing, seeping into his eyes and through his veins. He felt a tin sound clank in his stomach. Chief, if you found out about this, what would you think? Why is my heart doing bellyflops? I feel like court—do I have the right evidence? Crud!

"Nick…there's something really weird about you tonight. If I didn't know any better…" Maya inched closer and pretended to look at her feet. She smiled just a little, not enough to break the mood. "…I might think you wanted something from me."

Maya winked and Phoenix nearly died right there. His heart thumped, and for a second he seriously thought his heart was going to stop. She was going to be the death of him yet, for sure.

"M-Maya, I—"

He couldn't finish the sentence. Maya grabbed him by his stiff arms and attacked his face, holding his sleeves so he wouldn't recoil in surprise or, even worse, try to run away. She kissed him until he finally kissed back, and they stood still, in complete darkness, for at least ten seconds. Maya pulled away and examined Phoenix's deer-in-the-headlights expression. She giggled. The entirety of Phoenix's body had completely frozen up. Locked down, he stood still, encased in ice, unable to speak or even move; maybe the ice was the problem to begin with.

Should I really be doing this? Phoenix wondered, blubbering and speechless.

"Hehe, I know what you're thinking. 'Eew', right?" and she was about to laugh again when Phoenix cupped her chin in his hand and kissed her, taking her completely by surprise. She backed up against the edge of the counter; he put his right arm around her waist, his short fingernails clawing against the purple fabric of her obi. Maya backed up against the countertop until she was nearly bending completely backwards, clutching onto the back of Phoenix's suit, her lips still firmly pressed against his.

"Ooh!" Maya said, reaching behind her. "M-my back—"

Without hesitation, Phoenix lifted her up and sat her on the counter, her legs dangling off the edge. Maya pulled Phoenix close and kissed him again, making sure he saw that she was grinning so hard it was almost painful. She wrapped her legs around his and kept him close, her hands almost around his neck. After a moment (and after pushing a bunch of books off the counter), she moved her arms behind her back and began loosening her sash. When Phoenix noticed, he stepped back.

"M-Maya, wait, if you don't wan—" he said, but Maya shushed him and threw off the sash. She untied her hair and let it swoosh freely behind her.

"What's wrong, Nick? Chicken?" Maya said, her voice shuddering. Phoenix couldn't see that through the darkness she was blushing. "You don't wanna leave a case unfinished, do you?" She clawed at him through the air, and before Phoenix could object, she slipped her robe down her shoulders and they were kissing again, leaving Phoenix to wonder silently if she wanted this all along or if she was only playing with him. He felt Maya's hands run along his cheek, tousling his hair on their way by.

No, it didn't matter which.

Phoenix's lips ran down Maya's cheek and dipped to her neck. She giggled and started unbuttoning his suit, his rough hands guiding hers. He pulled off his undershirt and his tie and Maya pulled off the rest of her robe, leaving her to sit on the countertop in only her Kurain order purple bra and panties. Maya had told him once that the traditional wear of the Fey family was easier to put on and take off than a normal kimono. That certainly seemed to be the case.

"Are you cold?" Phoenix asked stupidly, and she pulled him close and unclasped her bra after quite a bit of effort. He felt her breasts touch his chest and the feeling of warm sweat from her chest against his. He held her close and he could hear her heartbeat, the only sound in a quiet room. Phoenix went for Maya's neck again and carved a trail down to her chest.

"Ahh, Nick…" Maya cooed. "Yes…please…" She giggled when she felt his mouth on her nipples, one then the other. He held her breasts in his hands and she kissed him back with her tongue when he rose up, and pale blue electricity coursed between them, so much so that they came alive like a flash of red and white lights speeding by on the highway. Phoenix knelt down and Maya pulled off her panties, spreading her legs apart, draping them over the edge of the counter. By the sound of her breath and her tiny, anxious vocalizations, he could only assume she was enjoying herself. He leaned in closer to the edge of the counter where Maya's legs dangled, pressed his cheek against her leg, breathed in her scent. His hands stroked the insides of her legs and he looked up into her eyes. Maya looked down at him with her usual hungry smile. Then, he gently slid two fingers into her and she moaned with all her breath, her hands reaching out to entangle her fingers in his hair. He caught her halfway between laughter and satisfied murmurs, her legs curling around his head, drawing him closer, squeezing with both legs and hands whenever he slowed. She cried meekly for more until his fingers were just fast enough to get her to come, and she threw back her head, laughing and moaning and clawing at Phoenix's head. Her walls throbbed and pulsed like her heartbeat. Maya fell back against the countertop, breathless, her fingers scrabbling to find her bearings.

Phoenix stood up and whispered her name several times. Finally, Maya sat up and straightened her robes. "I didn't know you could do something like this, Nick," she said with such perfect, stern deadpan that for a moment Phoenix honestly thought he had opened Pandora's Box instead of Maya's.

"Neither did I."

"What—what was that all about? Um…that was…really good."

Don't tell me you don't know what just happened! Your sister didn't even give you "the talk"? You've never even tried to—to—

Maya grinned. "That was pretty fun. You can't be full yet, though. After all, you only had one, so, um..."

There were a few nagging doubts left swimming around in Phoenix's mind, but doubts had never served him well before. Doubts had never stopped him from knocking down doors when necessary, or dashing across smoldering bridges. If there was anything that Phoenix Wright knew how to do, it was how to act without thinking, especially when something important was on the line. Besides, there was no going back; it was going to be either him and Maya here, or him alone in the back room with his "secret picture of Mystic Maya" and his glossy photo of Iris. But photos weren't very fun. Phoenix leapt onto the counter and looked at the now very red-faced Maya. Before he could say anything, she grabbed him and pulled him tight to her. Maya's hot breath wound its way under his skin.

"Maya," he breathed to her, "are you going to be all right?"

Maya chuckled and nodded. Being naked did not seem to temper her mischievousness, at least. Phoenix knew she was too proud to admit she was embarrassed, and too stubborn to change her mind once she made it up. Most of the random stuff they did was her idea anyway. Phoenix loved it.

"I'm not scared or anything," Maya said, looking up into Phoenix's ever-changing eyes. "See, I'm not as stupid as you think I am, Nick. I wanna make myself helpful—do something useful for a change." She winked, laughed, nipped at his bottom lip with hers. Her voice was a whisper that infiltrated his soul and his mind. He could feel his whole body shiver. "Come on…lighten up, Nick. You're not scared, are you?"

"I—no! N-no, no," Phoenix said. I don't know...maybe I am. I don't know.

Maya tugged at his pants and laughed watching him try to remove them while lying on her on top of the counter; not a welcoming prospect. He eventually succeeded, somehow. Phoenix wrapped his arms around Maya and held her close. Her back was warm and slick against his hands. She was there, and she was beautiful, and she wasn't trying to sneak away or make excuses, she was staying there, and it was possibly the greatest feeling Phoenix had ever known. He almost couldn't breathe, and he wasn't even swimming; it was like that time at the one party he ever went to at Ivy U—urgh. He tried to convince himself that it wasn't his fault he had gotten pulled into this, but he didn't buy it.

"Nick." Maya said, and her blank tone was as good as a command.

"Y-yeah…" Phoenix said, moving his hand down the side of her body, orienting himself before he put it in. Maya gasped and sucked in air, biting down on her lip for dear life. Her nails dug and raked across Phoenix's back. He barely noticed.

"Maya? You all right?" Phoenix said as she clung to him, her head resting on his shoulder. Her hair moved up and down and some of it flew into his face. That usually meant 'yes'.

"Ahh, ah, Nick—" Maya sucked in air. She coughed and laughed and sniffled and used him as her life preserver. "Don't—don't wimp out on me now."

Phoenix held her up in his arms, pushed forward, and Maya moaned into his kiss. She clutched onto his shoulders and her body, now completely hot and slick with sweat, answered each of his thrusts reflexively. For whatever reason, maybe, maybe there was a wall between them, somehow, erected who knew when, and maybe it was made only of plywood or cardboard, but he had a hammer and he was breaking it down.

Maya gasped. "Nick!" she said, laughing with ecstasy. "Oh, Nick! You're like—like the Steel Samurai!" Maya could barely contain herself.

Samurai Spear…yeah…Phoenix thought, and needed every inch of his poise not to burst out laughing himself.

He continued to cradle her as they moved, their cheeks touching, her tongue licking his ear. He wanted to take her away to a place where dreams rode on horses but were never thrown off, somewhere there was no need for thinking, somewhere warm and happy, somewhere far away from the trouble that followed her around like her personal raincloud. But he didn't think about anything. He felt everything, smelled her, breathed in the perspiration at the base of her neck. She mumbled with pleasure, incoherent things that sounded like a cross between his name and various theme songs sewn together. He moved faster, firmer, and Maya moaned deeper and buried her face in the space between his shoulder and his neck, and he knew, Phoenix knew that she was honestly happy, that there was no place she would rather be than here. That was all he wanted. He felt Maya's body tense under him.

"Nick, it's—it's—!"

She bit down and moaned through her lips, and Phoenix moved faster, his hand on her back, steadying her, until he felt himself coming and he kissed and grunted into her chest and let her moan into his hair. He collapsed in her arms, his lips still against her chest, hers still pressed against his head. For a few minutes he felt half-dead, and spent the time lying motionless, listening to Maya breathe.

When Phoenix finally remembered where he was, he discovered himself lying next to Maya, face-up, and it was like the discovery of the New World all over again. He looked over at Maya to his right, who was still save for the rising and falling of her chest.

I can't believe I just did that. We just—oh boy. Oh MAN. Is this the countert—my desk?!?

Phoenix sat up and realized just how close he was to falling off the counter and onto the floor near his computer chair. He reached out his hand to touch his back and found the scratches from Maya's nails still bleeding. Ouch. What was so erotic about being viciously clawed, anyway? Still smarting, Phoenix looked at Maya and remembered something.

Uh oh.

"We'd better not tell Pearls about this," he said.

"Yeah."

Phoenix's head spun. It felt like every bone and muscle in his body had melted and flowed into the Eagle River up in the mountains and he was nothing but a blissfully ignorant spiky-headed boatman. Maybe something bad was going to happen. Maybe even soon. But it didn't matter. They were here, and Maya was safe, and if keeping it that way meant keeping an eye on her at all times, then he was willing to take the bullet, make the nine o'clock date with the express train, jump into the Eagle River again, because it was worth it. Phoenix hadn't felt as free in a long, long, time. "Maya," he said, taking about a year's pause between each word, "thank you."

"For what?"

"I, um—well, for everything. You and the Chief…if I hadn't met you two, then…"

They shared silence. The night hit its peak and the moonlight stretched just far enough through the window to light their faces. He ran his hand gently through her hair.

Maya sat up and rustled Phoenix's shoulder. She chuckled. "Hey, Nick."

"Yeah?"

"Make me a sandwich."

What the—?! "Hey! Make your own! Besides, we don't have sandwich stuff."

"All right, then," Maya said, slamming her hands against the counter. "It's settled. Let's go get some burgers!" She jumped down and dressed herself. "On you, of course." Wink. "C'mon, let's go have some fun. Er, some more fun."

Phoenix chuckled and smiled. He had become so used to eating almost nothing that he had completely forgotten he was so hungry. At least he didn't have to resort to eating noodles. He jumped down and threw on his clothes and they were off again. Some things never change, and some things never should.

"Let's go."