I am five years too late but I am writing this anyway to say: THIS was really well written and fab and I love it

Okay, this took far longer than I wanted, but I finally got my words together for this!

First, there's an elephant in the room that the original game also failed to resolve with its timeline placement and recently occurred to me: Flora, and her whereabouts during and after the duration of the game's events and into this story (PLvsAA in the Laytonverse takes place after "Diabolical Box" and before "Unwound/Lost Future", so he's adopted Flora at this point in the timeline).
For the sake of sanity, let's go with this premise: Flora is off visiting her former home and childhood "family" in St. Mystere with/without Layton's parents while Luke and Layton were handling another engagement prior to the events of PLvsAA taking place, and thus didn't receive news of her adoptive father going missing for two weeks until after she and the Laytons returned to London after Phoenix and Maya left. You can use that, or come up with another like scenario to compensate for her absence. Now you don't have to gruel over that detail.

Anyways, this is a wonderful resolution to a great story. Justice is served, the case is wrapped up, and the former citizens of Labyrinthia starting anew properly and for the better. While it's not specified in detail in regards to how Patty, Eve, and Espella are fairing now, I do hope Espella (and by extension, Eve too) is getting the proper help to overcome her psychological traumas. I feel a bit bad for Arthur Cantabella, but he's still without a doubt guilty of all charges.

Now to the main four. My goodness, all the smiles and tears plus a few laughs! If I dare be so bold, I'd really like to think this is EXACTLY how their goodbyes went! It's adorable how Maya acknowledges Luke as family and a little brother, and how strongly and believably you portray Luke reciprocating the feeling. Now the big one: Layton and Phoenix. My GODS, never have I loved a crossover friendship this much since I discovered your stories with these two! The best part of their dynamic is how deeply you showcase their mutual respect for one another, particularly Layton's towards Phoenix as you best exemplified in the previous chapter. Unlike the Professor, Phoenix isn't used to receiving such open praise or being acknowledged for his achievements/good traits without them being backhand-compliments or lessened in some way. Layton openly and with utter genuineness expresses heartfelt recognition to Phoenix's best qualities with as much reverence as Phoenix does for his, but additionally get across the message to Phoenix that he's viewed as an equal and with high esteem of the same caliber as vice versa. What highlights this in this chapter is the exchange regarding Phoenix's "title". Luke and Maya playful tease him about it, but while Phoenix doesn't take it to heart, Layton still revalidates that his "Ace Attorney" title and profession is something he holds in high regard.

It's also just a treat to see these two be complete dorks around each other XD, look at those hugs and banter! They respect each other, but they've also reached a level of casualness to be more unrestrained, as opposed to constant professionalism. Once in a blue moon, Phoenix might get an interaction with similar levels of casualness from Edgeworth ('cause he's a tsundere), but there isn't that limitation with Layton anymore be the conclusion of this fic! Beautiful ending!

**I'm curious about if you have any immediate plans to write more for this crossover game after you complete "The Earth King Invites You to Labyrinthia". With how well you write for these fandoms, I really hope you'll continue to produce more works for it. In fact, given your premise for this, I'm thoroughly interested on what your interpretations of some of the interactions/perspectives during the adventure were like (the big ones that spring to mind include Layton's POV during his meeting with the Storyteller up to the "Golden Curse", where he believes Phoenix to be in danger of falling victim to the curse; Luke overhearing Phoenix's emotional talk with Rouge; and the big reunion between the four). If you're not keen on requests, I respect that, this is just food for thought.** Hope to see more from you! :D

Whoops, forgot to put my name in that review!

That big "Guest" review was me!

You aren't wrong about the age mix up: Layton is 37, and Phoenix would be 24-25. As for the timelines, you're good on that front.

Chapter 4 was the funniest chapter, but this one's the most powerful. I mean, good grief, the feels hit hard here! There's plenty of giggles here and there about the four spending their last day together, and then there's deep emotional bits flanking the start and finish. The beginning with Phoenix's reflections on Labyrinthia are very thought provoking and engaging. All the fears, what ifs, unknowns and uncertainties captured in the first few paragraphs is fantastic. The only thing that tops it is the last act with Phoenix and Layton one-on-one. THIS EXCHANGE MAN, where the Professor lays down the most heartfelt compliment and acknowledgement of the century to Phoenix, is the single best piece of writing in the whole story. It's utterly beautiful. If it wasn't already clear these two are friends by this point, this bit solidifies it.
From there, the "dawwww" falls in place and there's a few more laughs before it ends on a sweet note.

Phenomenal penultimate chapter!

Edgeworth makes everything better. And also funnier in this story.

Every single joke involving him was laugh-out-loud hilarious, from his dry wit, to getting his ears talked off by Maya and Luke, to being teased at every given opportunity. All the same, it was really touching that he (once again) went out of his way to see to Phoenix's well-being and openly admit (in front of company, no less) he's worried about him. In Maya's words: "Aaaaw, he loves you!" I also loved the bit with him and Layton sizing each other up.

In regards to the less humorous aspects, Phoenix gave his answer that he would not defend Arthur Cantabella. I don't blame him, and it's perfectly fitting that he wouldn't defend someone he knew was guilty. However, this also means that Phoenix and Maya only have a few days left with their new friends.

Easily the best chapter humor-wise X'D

Oh, I remember this chapter.

Chapter 3, in which Phoenix and Maya spent their first night at the Layton residence, the group learns of the new developments regarding the Labyrinthia investigation, Phoenix opens up more, the group is partnered off (Maya with Luke, Phoenix with Layton) for bonding time at other London attractions, more flustered blushy moments, and receive a surprise visit from a familiar face.

The first big thing of note is how Layton immediately takes to using Phoenix's first name in this chapter. A tiny detail, but a hallmark towards the dynamic between the two adult lead protagonists steadily strengthening. Using news reports regarding Labyrinthia to provide the information on that component of the story in addition to as segue between the scene changes happening with the group is a really cool transition. Now one thing I realized rereading this again is that there's some minor continuity issues. In the game, when the four left after solving the mystery, the truth of what was going on was revealed to the whole town of Labyrinthia and Arthur Cantabella releases them from the hypnosis. As such, seeing the police go in, finding the "Labyrinthians", and exposing them to non-contaminated air is according to this chapter for the first time conflicts with that. I know this is an alternate take on the game's ending, but for it to properly fit in with the chronology of where it diverges from the game, this particular bit needs to be revised or there needs to be explanation for this plot divergence. Other than that, the rest falls into place without issue. The people in the roles of the townspeople confused and shell shocked at what the experiment entailed was appropriate, and having Espella hospitalized is a MUCH more realistic outcome; I'm willing to buy into the hypnotism and the chemicals from Arthur's factory doing that weird thing to the water that makes it so that when it's consumed, it knocks you unconscious when you hear the sound of steel being struck, but the one thing I didn't buy for a second about the game's ending was that after learning about the extensive childhood trauma Espella endured which spiraled into Labyrinthia's creation to begin with to further suppress those scarring memories, you can't tell me she's completely all better with no persisting psychological issues or need for psychiatric help since Layton and Phoenix revealed the truth.

On a more lighthearted note, the humor of course is always a highlight in your work. I liked the montage-esque feel to scenes near the beginning, which manage to be heartwarming in detailing the group hanging out together and Phoenix talking about his adventures and loved ones as well as funny. Particular mentions go to Maya at breakfast and the bit where after you mention Phoenix talk about Pearl and how she'd love Luke, resulting in a very flustered apprentice, which is extra funny on a meta level because I've seen other crossover fics with those two shipped together as a couple. Pretty much the majority of Maya's lines will be amusing and Phoenix's flustered thoughts are hilarious. "No more thinking like a rom-com"/the "Don't be a rom-com" mantra are my personal favorites from this chapter.

Now to the one-on-one with Phoenix and Layton. Never before has one line summed up the sudden ambiguity and mixed signals I received reading this chapter through the first time: "So much of flirting and polite behavior overlapped". One, this line is hilarious in context, and two, I had and still have no idea whether these ship tease elements were intentional or not. The story is tagged with the "Friendship" genre, but now three chapters in, suddenly there's not-so-platonic vibes in place here. Maybe it's just Phoenix's thoughts
muddling the reality of what's really going on, but again, there's mixed signals EVERYWHERE. This works to your advantage for providing bountiful amounts of humor, but also a bit against you as for a fic marked in the "Friendship" genre, some of the interactions between Phoenix and Layton come off as very "shippy", and readers may find that a bit misleading. I still can't tell if it's there just for laughs, or implying genuinely romantic undertones, or some of both. I enjoy it and have no preference which way it goes, I just want to know what it is.

On the other hand, Luke and Maya's dynamic is very clearly portrayed as sibling-like. There's not a whole lot I can say other than you effectively deepen the bond they formed in the game and they're adorable together.

What I wasn't expecting at all was a certain Prosecutor appearing at the end, nor did I expect the wham question he laid out nor Phoenix's answer to said question.

I have a lot of questions that need answers to, but this is still an enjoyable chapter

Alright! Chapter 2!

There's one typo: "Phoenix reflexively tucked her under his arm to keep her arm." I'm guessing you meant "keep her warm".

In this chapter, before turning in for the night, Layton decides to treat the others to a ride on the London Eye. Phoenix, not knowing what the London Eye is, is admonished by Maya, and subsequently finds himself in an awkward predicament when he finds out a little too late that it involves heights, being the acrophobe he is.

Again, the character interactions and the humor really shine. The exchanges with Maya and Phoenix, are very well done and in-character. It also does a great job of emphasizing Phoenix's internal conflict when she calls Nick out on acting differently. Maya is a free spirit and unlike Phoenix, doesn't have any inhibitions about being herself around Luke and the Professor, even if her actions don't necessarily constitute as "best behavior" as Phoenix is initially striving for. I can really feel his struggle as well as the isolation in not knowing how to act around Layton in a casual setting, as Luke has known the Professor for years and Maya doesn't have his self-consciousness. As a walking ball of insecurity, social awkwardness and self-doubt myself, I know the struggle too well of not knowing how to act someone and the paralyzingly anxiety of wanting to make a good impression or impress someone I feel completely inadequate in comparison to. And poor Nick just can't catch a break. From the embarrassment of Layton catching him revert back to his usual self towards Maya and his plans for "best behavior" fall through the cracks, Maya jokingly wiping her greasy hands on his only jacket on hand, then has to deal with his acrophobia when they actually board the London Eye, followed by a series of flustering moments while making small talk with the Professor over the course of the ride.

It's also in this chapter that I first saw how well you write the interactions and growing friendship dynamic between Phoenix and Layton. You not only write them completely in-character, but you create effective and believable scenarios that put them in positions to allow for character growth to flourish. Most of the chapter goes into detail building up how off-kilter and out of one's comfort zone Phoenix is on top of trying to "look cool", then when he finally gets to interact one-on-one with the Professor and finally admits to his acrophobia, it puts Layton in a position of off balance, as this revelation abates what was his intent to treat Phoenix and Maya to a well-known attraction during their extended stay his home country. They both open up a bit to each other from there and break some ice, and with how much of an anxious wreck Phoenix was for the majority of the chapter, it's a nice step of progress to see him breach some of the gap by granting Layton first-name basis and in return, being allowed to drop formalities with the Professor.

Flustered!Phoenix is very amusing. The entire bit with him overthinking how one of his responses could be taken as an unintended innuendo and going into a tizzy about it for a whole paragraph before concluding with this wonderful line: "He was terrible at gauging ages and too easily flustered to think, and Layton offering him his hand made it that much worse." is too funny. Oh, Phoenix, you adorable dork. The hand-holding was cute, and it was a really nice touch to use it as a means of comfort on Layton's part for assuaging Phoenix's acrophobia while keeping him company looking out over the view of London.

Great work!

Hello! I left a mini comment on this fic before, but I decided to go back and give a proper review of each chapter of this story.

Firstly, this is a very creative concept and idea. Hell, the very concept of giving a Laytonesque mystery conclusion a "Reality Sets In" alternative ending and aftermath, is downright hilarious in and of itself, but I will admit, while I still liked the game's "happy ending" and extras, the more I take a realistic approach with how the crossover adventure, even by Layton standards some things were a little too "hand wavy" and forgiven too easily. Despite Arthur Cantabella not having any true malicious intent, that doesn't make a large portion of his actions okay. Or entirely legal. Bronev was of a similar cut and mold of "antagonist who isn't truly evil at heart or had entirely ill intent that did a lot of bad things to achieve his goals just went about it the completely wrong way", but was still arrested for the crimes he committed after the events of Azran Legacy. Although Cantabella didn't commit illegal acts at the same scale as Bronev did, his actions were still sketchy enough that when you really think about it, the bigger of a stretch it seems that the adventure would actually get the "all's well that ends well" conclusion it got.

While also highly entertaining in execution, all of the points Maya, Luke, and Phoenix made once they get back to London are completely valid, and I really can't blame them for getting angry about it. Also, they were there for two weeks!? And yeah, even if they weren't gone for nearly as long as that, considering the circumstances in which they ended up in Labyrinthia, there's no way their disappearances went unnoticed that whole time, especially in Phoenix and Maya's case, where they came to London for an international event (making their disappearances an international incident), let alone not investigated into further.

Anywho, enter Inspector Chelmey, who finally gets the answers he's been looking for since the four's disappearances caused a "panic at the yard" and no doubt quite the headache for him. However, once he takes their statements/testimonies of the events surrounding their disappearances, or rather "kidnappings", he understandably escalates the matter into a full-on investigation, meaning Maya and Phoenix get to stick around London with Luke and the Professor a little while longer. Just how well that will go over won't come into light until later chapters.

I told you before and I'll tell you again, because I really can't praise you enough for talented you are at writing humor. From Maya's explosive first line of dialogue and subsequent rant, to Luke and Layton's semi-subdued rejoicing at eating a non-bread based meal, to Phoenix's spot-on and hysterical reaction to "not being out of the woods yet" verdict from Chelmey and their expense account running out. The imagery you give to the latter is so vivid, and I'll laugh every time I reread this because the mental image of Phoenix colliding his head with the table and groaning pitifully in utter "FML" fashion at his standard luck streak, with Layton concernedly providing a hand of comfort, will NEVER cease to be funny (as well as heartwarming, but mostly funny). Heck, I might even make some fanart of that in the future.

The other great aspect of this story idea is not just the realistic approach to the game's aftermath, but touching on the relationships between the four now that the big adventure is over. There's no doubt Professor Layton, Luke, Phoenix and Maya were all allies throughout the ordeal, and you continue to showcase the friendship/sibling-like bond Maya and Luke developed in the game, but to challenge the idea of uncertainty of the existence or non-existence of the, for lack of better term, "friendship status" between Phoenix and the Professor through Phoenix's insecurities is really compelling. Best of all, it's not all that much of a stretch to make. The two "adults" of the group definitely worked well together in uncovering the mystery of Labyrinthia, but as much as I loved the crossover game, I really felt it didn't go into enough depth with the friendship relations between the four that weren't already pre-existing (Layton and Luke's mentor/apprentice relationship, Phoenix and Maya's courtroom partnership/familial in all but by blood relationship). With the exceptions of both the pre-existing ones and the dynamic between Luke and Maya (though I still wish the latter was expanded on a bit more as well), the game didn't give nearly enough depth to the comraderie with the others, and particularly that between the titular protagonists of the two franchises. They're considered friends, but they didn't interact nearly as much in-game, and while Phoenix and Layton do have a mutual respect for each other's skills, they certainly weren't showcased with the same level of dynamic as Luke and Maya got.

In fact, there's plenty of ammunition from the game itself to fuel Phoenix's self-consciousness. Remember how at the end, Eve (Darklaw, not the cat) tells the group that she orchestrated bringing the Professor to Labyrinthia and had complete faith in him being to be able to uncover the truth, but Phoenix's involvement was completely accidental? Also, Layton is given a bit more credit in spoken acknowledgements from the characters and the one treated as the main threat by the main antagonists. Phoenix gets some respect for his courtroom performance with the witch trials, but isn't quite acknowledged to the same degree as Layton in the exchanged dialogue. Add the fact that a lot of characteristics about Layton, such as his wider array of talents, cool composure, and the fact that he's MUCH more widely respected (whereas Phoenix is quite the butt monkey in his franchise) on top of everything else, it's not all that inconceivable to imagine Phoenix might feel intimidated or inferior in comparison, particularly now the with the adventure over, there isn't a dire situation to focus his attention on instead. Then with the new problems arising now that they're back in London, for Layton to once again instantly come up with a solution to Phoenix and Maya's living arrangement predicament by having them stay with him and Luke; a noble and appreciated gesture, but it doesn't help Phoenix's self-esteem to see more evidence of how the Professor can do just about anything.

An excellent start and first chapter!

SEQUEL! SEQUEL! SEQUEL! SEQUEL! SEQUEL!

This was a great story! Hope you'll do another installment!

Um, are you sure "Friendship" is the correct and/or only genre? Cause it's a bit misleading.

Other than that, some un-spaced paragraphs, and the occasional spelling error, I really liked this story. Great work!

This was the most cutest thing I have ever read!

i an screaming omg i loved it SO MUCH im just AAAAAAAAAAH

wh a t th e eheck this is so gay? its so damn gay? and its labeled "friendship" genre?/ wh a t

This came out very cute, you have a lovely writing style :)

A perfect ending to an awesome story :) I would love it if you did a sequel to this at some point! :D