“Snooping as usual, I see?”  Phoenix turned the corner to see the wide backs of  Maya and Maggey blocking a hall, the girls stunned in shock in the middle of the path.  “So whose candies do you vork for?  Smugvorths?  Murshey's?  Bestle?”  

“Excuse me?  Does there seem to be a problem?”  Phoenix approached Maya and Maggey from behind, motioning for them to step to the side, the girls seemingly paralyzed, caught in the act of sneaking around Bonker's factory.  “I'm sure there is some sort of misunderstanding her-” Nick's jaw dropped and his eyes bulged out.  “Holy crap, you're huge!” he squealed, jumping back behind Maggey and Maya.  Standing ahead of the trio was a towering man in a blue security uniform.  His hair was red, parted carefully down the middle and worn slick to each side.  It was a rather childlike hairstyle on the body of a statuesque man with chiseled features and a stern, stoney face.  

“Nick, this guy looks like serious business!”  Maya said, slowly creeping backwards.

“You can deal with him, sir!  You've taken done tougher guys in court!”  Maggey was also slipping backwards, leaving Nick alone with this towering guardsman.  

“But I don't have my podium to stand behind!”  Nick yelped, his eyes slowly creeping up towards the mighty man.  “The stand gives me power!”

“Are these your guests?”  The man asked as Phoenix was paralyzed by his gaze.  

“Yes, they are,” Nick hesitantly responded despite not wanting to take responsibility in the face of this mammoth.  “Are they causing you some problems, because I'm very sorry if they are!”

“You should vatch them closer,” he replied.  “I could have svore that I saw them sneaking out of the research lab.”

“We weren't sneaking in it!  We were looking for some evidence to build Mr. Wright's case for the innocence of Jimmy Pocket, sir!”  

“We can't leave any stone unturned or any candy bar unwrapped,” Maya added, licking a small fleck of chocolate from the corner of her mouth as she smiled innocently for the guard.

“No vone is permitted to enter the research lab when the head of research, development, and distribution is not in.  If you vould like the lab tour then please return tomorrow, when she will be back from her business trip.”  He glared holes into Nick the whole time.

“Wait, you said research, development, and distribution?  Isn't that one 'd' too many?” Phoenix inquired.  

“Here at Bonker's Chocolate ve have our top vorkers control as many related departments as possible.  Ve feel that this makes it so that there is more communication in between the departments vhile saving money that can be used to concentrate on vhat matters most; the chocolate.  This is vhat Mr. Bonker believed.”

(That, or Mr. Bonker set it up this way so he'd have less big paychecks he'd need to hand out)

“So tell me, if that's the case then what departments do you work for?”  Nick crossed his arms.

“My name is Octavius Bloomp.  I am the head of security and factory foreman.”

“That seems like an interesting combination,” Nick noted.  “But then again Mr. Bonker seems to have some bizarre ideas about corporate leadership.”

“He definitely has the perfect look for both jobs, though!”  Maya observed, safely behind Nick and able to say whatever she wished about the towering man.  “I bet he could run the machines with his own power!”

“I'll say!  He'd scare the killer instinct out of a criminal with that stone cold look of his, sir!”

“I think he'd scare more out of them than that if they saw him coming down a dark hall,” Nick added, still slightly intimidated by this towering mass of man.  “But with you on security detail I'm sure you'd know something about the night of the murder?”

“I vas on patrol through the halls that night,” Octavius began.  “I can only be in one place at a time.  During the supposed time of the murder I was in the research and development area on orders of Mr. Bonker himself.  It seems that there had been some prying eyes looking for things they should not know.”  Octavius paused and glared at  Phoenix, his mouth drooping and frowning even more so than normal. “But this information exclusively for the company.  Vhy do you need to know this so much?”

“Show him the badge, Nick!”  Maya demanded.

“Do it sir!”  Maggey added, Nick frowning and shaking his head.

“Now you took away the surprise,” Phoenix said as he held out the badge for Octavius.  “I am Phoenix Wright, defense attorney representing Jimmy Pocket.  I'm here looking for some evidence to build my case for Mr. Pocket's innocence.”

“Which is why we're looking all over this place!”  Maya added.  “Any suggestions?”

“Ve vould prefer it if you limited your research and respect the vishes of the departed Mr. Bonker.  I understand that you are looking for evidence for your case, but I vould prefer it if you vould avoid the research lab vhile Miss Veronica Peppers is out.  I also vould like it if you did not investigate the security room.  Lawyer or not, you ares still not velcome to sneak around when we have so many secrets ve do not vant our competitors to know.”  Octavius stared downwards at Wright as he said this.

“I can respect Mr. Bonker's wishes, but we can't forget about my client's.  I guess I'll come back to visit the research lab tomorrow, just in case.”  Phoenix stroked his chin.  “But visiting the security office would help us find out so much vital information.  It could make or break Jimmy's case.”

“Don't you want us to prove your vice president's innocence?  If he ends up in jail then you'll get no more of that really nice tea!”  Maya protested.

“If you view the security tapes then you may find out the secrets behind this company's chocolates.  The thing Mr. Bonker vould vant most is that his candy recipes aren't copied by the competition.”

“Is that so?”  Phoenix asked.  “Moreso than justice?”  (This guy is a real broken record.  I might have to take him to court if I want anything more out of him)

“Vhen he vas first beginning his business a close companion stole many of his recipes to begin his own candy.  It vas a tough time for Mr. Bonker, and because of this he guards all of his secrets very carefully.  You may call him eccentric, but I believe that he has all of his best interests in mind.”

“That is harsh,” Nick muttered quietly, nodded his head solemnly.  “It certainly explains some of his odder behaviors.”

“As the heir to the Bloomp chocolate dynasty I can understand vanting no vone to take your recipes.  Ve have kept our secrets guarded for a very long time.  It vould be simply catastrophic if our secrets got out.”

“Of course it would,” Maya shouted. “Bloomp chocolates are very famous with the classy crowd.”

“With the clientele that Bloomp chocolate serves you could make lots of money if you had their recipes, sir,” suggested Maggey.  “I bet the same is true for Bonker's chocolate.”

“It's a bit surprising to see the heir to such a rich company working as a security guard for a rival, then,” Nick nodded his head.

“I do not consider Bonker's to be a rival at all,” Bloomp stated flatly.  “Bloomp deals in chocolates for the rich and famous, the extravagant upper class.  Bonker's candies are for hyperactive children.”

“For someone who works here that's not a good thing to say about your product,” Phoenix noted, sensing some hostility in Octavius's voice.

“I take protecting Bonker's secrets very seriously.  Last veek a voman was caught stuck in vone of our vindows.  I had to push her out and escort her off the premises.”  He shook his head.  “It vas not easy getting her out.”

“Would you mind describing this woman?”  Nick asked, surprised to see Octavius slipping some new clues into the discussion.  “She could be an important lead for our case.”

“She vas a chunky lady dressed in a coat and sweatpants.  I believe the coat vas green.  She had very big hair, almost as big as her stomach.  She said that she vas here because she vanted to learn about the 'hiring scandal,' but I believe she vas trying to hide her true intentions, making up lies to lure us avay from the truth.  She vished to steal our recipes, I'm sure of it!”

(Very big hair?  He has to be talking about Lotta Heart.  I can't think of anyone snoopier than her.  I don't think she's the kind to give corporate espionage a shot, so she must've been trying to find more information about this 'hiring scandal' for the tabloids.  That sounds like something I might want to find a scoop on myself.  Everyone here seems pretty testy when it comes to talking about their recruitment.)

“A hiring scandal, you say?”  Phoenix inquired.

“There vas no such scandal.  It's just the media trying to stir up a vasp's nest that doesn't exist.   People say that there vas a scandal behind Jimmy Pocket's hiring, but as a man who knows very much about the business I know that they are creating lies to fill up their pages.”

“Is there any reason why they might consider this a scandal?  There might be a tiny kernel of truth to this whole thing,” Nick continued, trying to get as much information as he could out of Octavius as possible.

“I am not at liberty to talk about these things,” Octavius replied.  “I might have already said too much.  You are holding up my patrol, after all.”

“He has a point, Nick!  Don't get in the way of his job!”  Maya said.  

“I agree, maybe we ought to get moving!”  Maggey suggested, waddling ahead, the girls stomach grumbling in tandem.

“Are you saying because you're concerned about Octavius, or because you want to find something to eat?”  Nick asked.

“A little bit of both!” Maya giggled, waddling down the hall and towards Billy's office, with Maggey in tow.

“Well, thanks for the info,” Nick said, extending a hand to Octavius.  “I really appreciate it.”

“My eyes are on you, Mr. Wright.”  Octavius squinted at Phoenix.  “How do I not know you aren't after Billy's secrets too?”  

“Vhat?”  Nick asked as Octavius turned around and left down the hall, peering at Phoenix the whole way through, his head twisted around as he crossed the corner.  “Cold,” Nick replied, shivering some as the veritable golem vanished around the hall.  “I should keep an eye on that guy, though.  Usually it's a good sign I've found a killer when a suspect waits until everyone is gone to act like a complete jerk.  I might have to wrangle him on into the court room to get some creamy swiss truffle information from him.  But until then, I have a crime scene to investigate.  I just hope Maya and Maggey went there and didn't go on one of their little derails.  Why do I have a feeling that they actually did visit that research lab?” Nick sighed heavily, before sticking his head back up and embarking in the same direction as his companions.

–

“Once again, is this place really a candy factory?  This looks more like santa's work shop.  It even has weird dwarfs!”  Phoenix looked at all of the toys sitting on the shelves in Bonker's office, along with old candy wrappers, awards, and a stack of books on candy and confectionery history.  All of these together made it look more like a children's dream room.

“Santa's work shop?  This place looks more like heaven!”  Maya squeeled, before noticing the disarray on Billy's desk.  “Except for that!  I can't believe someone did that to him!”  All sorts of  office supplies and writing tools had been knocked around and a pool of blood had collected in front of Billy's chair, dripping onto the floor and leaving a red stain at the murdered's 'footsteps.'

“I saw on the news that it was a pen in the throat that got him,”  Maggey recollected as she cautiously moved closer to the crime scene.  “It looks like the PD already took it in for evidence.”

“They say it was from Jimmy's office.  That means that whoever had interviews with him earlier in the night might have brought it with themselves.”  Phoenix thought back to that note he had discovered.  “Which means anyone who was in his office before the murder could have brought it along to pin the crime on him.”

“Good eye, sir!  We can't use that pen to cast doubt on Mr. Pocket, even if it has his finger prints.  Everyone here does wear gloves, after all!”  

“We'll need something a bit firmer than this for the judge, though,” Phoenix began, before raising his eyebrows.  He looked to the side of the desk, spotting a small trash can, and peeked in, despite an earlier warning from Gumshoe.  “Ugh, Gumshoe was right!”  Nick looked away from the trash can, his stomach churning some from the special piece of evidence Jimmy left in the rubbish.  “Don't look in there,” he groaned.  “It's not worth it.”

“I didn't plan on it,” Maya said, rolling her eyes.  She scanned the table once more, before noticing something sticking out from the blood on the table.  “Huh?  What's that?”  She leaned in for a better look, her progress somewhat hindered with her belly pressing against the desk.  Something small was sticking out from the desk, a thin object which was slightly transparent where not covered with blood.

“What is that?”  Nick asked, leaning in at Maya's side, with Maggey bending over for a closer look soon after.  

“It looks like a piece of tape stuck to his desk,” Maggey said.  

“I wonder what it was stuck to, though?”  Phoenix mused.  The tape was bundled around, as if it was being used to stick something up upon the desk, and because of this it was mostly bloodied except for a small portion which was still a foggy, semi-transparent white.  “Maybe someone stuck a note there.  When we get a chance we should see if there is any sticky residue on anything else.”

“How come?  How important is tape to this case?”  Maggey asked, standing up before her blubber could send her toppling right into the crime scene.

“You never know.  We've had weirder pieces of evidence to work with!”  Maya smiled, nostalgically, remembering some of Nick's odder victories in the court room.  

“I bet most of the good stuff has already been taken to the investigation.”  Nick carefully made his way around the other side of the desk, trying not to step in any of the blood or any other possible “surprises” Jimmy might have left in his boss's office.  “Yet that doesn't mean that is all.  We want to find out how Mr. Bonker hired all of his workers.”

“Snoop through the drawers, Nick!”  Maya suggested.  “That's where you hide all your vital information, so I bet that's where Billy puts his too.”

“What are you snooping around through that for, Maya?” Nick asked as he opened a few of the doors at his desk, finding ordinary office supplies stashed away within.  “You really should mind your own business.”  Nick opened one last door and was greeted with the glimmering reflection of a candy wrapper.  From within its platinum confines a few blocks of chocolate poked out, all intact except for one chunk that had been pulled off.

“That's a weird place for a candy bar, sir!  It might melt there!”  noted Maggey.

“He might have been saving it for later, or something could have prevented him from finishing it,” Nick suggested.  “Not everyone can finish a candy bar in one bite like you girls. There do exist such things as interruptions!”

“Like the murder?”  Maya suggested with a morbid cheerfulness.

“That usually stops people from finishing their meals.”

“So can I finish it?”  Maya asked, reaching for the candy bar as she tried to pull it from Nick's hands.

“No, no!”  Phoenix grasped her wrists before she could snatch the snack and gobble it right up, holding it up in the air while Maya hopped up trying to pull the bar back down.  “I think we should hold onto this chunk of chocolate.  Something is fishy about an unfinished candy bar right at the crime scene.  Maybe the pen that ended it all wasn't the only murder weapon.”

“Nick, candy could never kill anyone!  Candy doesn't kill people, people kill people!  We're not going to let this chocolate fry!”  

“Maya, we've had to deal with poisoned food and fake murder setups all of the time!” Nick recollected.

“Boy do I know that!”  Maggey gasped, remembering her second brush with murder, in which a poisoned coffee and a setup crime scene nearly condemned the hapless young woman.

“We're going to try and get this sweet to toxicology,” Phoenix said, slipping the candy bar into a paper bag.  

“I hope they treat it well!  Maybe if they clean it up I can still eat it when the case is over?”  Maya clapped her hands together and smiled pleadingly at Nick.

“Maya, quit thinking with your stomach before you do something dumb!”  Nick continued to dig through the doors to Billy's desk, looking for anything as intriguing or helpful as that little lost block of candy.  “We can't account for evidence if its in your belly.”  Nick pulled more objects out of the drawers and set them aside, before pulling out a tall manilla envelope, thick and heavy, as if it were full.  “Well what do we have here?  A suspicious manilla envelope?  Phoenix spied a small sticker on it and read the date.  “It looks like this was dated for three years ago.”  He flipped the folder around and read the one word on its cover.  “Memories.”

“It looks like someone is a sentimental guy!”  Maggey said as Phoenix walked back around the desk, undoing the clasp and opening the folder to share with the others.

“Should you really open that?  You might be looking into private things no one on earth was meant to know!  It might have something about him and a bad glass elevator accident, or father issues, or it might even be where he keeps the lyrics to all the Goopa Loopa songs!”

“There are some things I have to brave in the sake of justice,” Phoenix said as he pulled a stack of well worn papers out from the folder.  He started to skim the first one intently.

“As much as it pains me to admit it, I can't run this business on my own for much longer.  I'm getting older and weaker, and a man can only do so much in the name of his art before continuing becomes foolish.  It is against all of my wishes and I fear it may cause me to lose control of my business, but I must find someone worthy to take over this company.  I might come to regret it, but it must be done.”  Phoenix slid the paper back to the front of the stack.  “So he was some sort of crazy candy hermit?”

“Well, name one artist who wasn't a bit nutty, Nick!” Maya challenged, pouting and puffing up her already chubby cheeks.  Phoenix paid little attention to Maya as he skimmed through the papers, not wanting to focus on them for too long due to the court case's strict time limit.

“He has papers on each of the five applicants.  He received a flood of people wanting to be his understudy and only chose five out of the three thousand that wanted this position.”  Nick sat down the paper momentarily.  “I guess he was more popular than he wanted.”

“It seems perfectly in line with his character.  He had a tough enough time being around five people, much less the 3000 papers he received, sir!  I know I'd have troubles too looking through 3000 papers!  I might fall asleep right in the middle of them.”

“The first applicant was former child actor Terry Vision.  He had a very over the top ideal for the company.  He wanted to take it from something subdued and fantastic to extreme and action-packed.  His candy ideas were hits with the children, especially Car Crash Explosion Pop Rocks and Fake Blood Cherry Cordials.”

“He might've been popular with the children, but he definitely didn't win Mr. Bonker's favor!” Maya noted.

“Yep,” Nick said, continuing reading his profile on the next page.  “He left the running early to pursue some of his own projects but ended up coming back to work as the head of public relations and the brains iconic Soopa Doopa character.  I may have to talk to him about his time away from the company.”

“Who's next in line, then?”  Maggey asked.

“Indigo Poppins left a high position in the Bubble Dum candy company looking to reinvent Bonker's Chocolate's image.  She had all sorts of wonderful ideas for gum, gum... and more gum.”

“She's focused, at least!”  Maya added.

“But unfortunately not on the right product.  Billy didn't want to streamline his business to focus on gum and Indigo didn't stick around much longer.  She's back here as head of Human Resources.”  Phoenix flipped to the next page.  “We've already met Mr. Bloomp, and it seems like he was just as unpleasant then as he was now.”  Maya leaned over and peaked at the black and white photograph of Bloomp at the top of the page, gasping at the picture.

“Wait, is that the right guy?  He looks so much more round while the Octavius we know is nothing but angles chiseled with anger and rage!”

“He is the heir to a huge chocolate company, one perhaps even richer than Bonker's.  I guess he had lots of treats growing up, and it looks like he took lots of treats while interning for Billy, so much that his sweet tooth became a bit of an issue amongst the two.”

“I can't hold that against him, sir!”  Maggey said, peeking at the picture as well.  “If I worked here I'd need a truck to haul me to my office!”

“He wasn't canned for overeating on the job, however.  Mr. Bonker's had his suspicions about Octavius concerning some of the communications that went on with his family, especially when more memos left his office than the norm.  He became so worried that the Bloomps were planning a takeover that he respectfully dismissed him from the process.  A few days later Octavius was dropped from his family's will, and we all know where Octavius is now.  Looks like the mighty fall hard”

“That sounds just more than a bit iffy to me!”  Maya gasped, covering her mouth at this revelation about Octavius.  

“Why would Billy Bonker want someone so sneaky in charge of his security?”  Maggey wondered out loud.  “Especially someone who sounds like they'd have a lot of ill-will against Mr. Bonker?”

“I don't know, but we might need to pay a lot closer attention to Mr. security guard.  He wasn't the last contestant, though” Phoenix flipped to the next page.  “Veronica Peppers is a top-of-her-class business student with a shrewd eye for profit that specializes in marketing.  She has the brain for business, but not the heart for candy.  Still, she gladly accepted a position for marketing, distribution, and R&D.  She's an incredible business woman, so I'm sure she'll be the perfect fill for these new positions.  I will watch her closely to see what heights she reaches in this company.”

“Mr. Bonker has shrewd standards to be his heir,” Maggey began, “but I can understand his decisions.  Why hire someone who knows everything about business but nothing about everything?”

“But it looks like he hired someone who knew a whole lot of nothing.”  Nick flipped to Billy's profile.  “He was a long time fan of the candy, though, and could name every product ever, even the discontinued ones.  He seemed most fit to pay attention to the centerpiece of the Bonker's dynasty, the candy,” summarized Nick.  

“That's sweet!  Billy saw past all of those sneaky business types and knew what he really needed to focus on!”

“At the very worst, I can always breed him into my perfect heir, him being so eager to please,” Nick completed.

“Well, that just went from heartwarming to ice cold!”  Maya gasped, shivering.  “Man, Bonker's was not only weird in a funny way, but also in a just... funny way.  The same kinda funny like when a clown loses his job.”

“Those papers definitely showed me a side about Octavius I never knew about!”  Maggey shivered, thinking of how pleasant the large man had been before she learned about all of the dirty doings he had done in the name of business intrigue.  

“That's exactly why I need to see if I can get into the security room.  Between his 10:15 appointment and all of these skeletons I need to get a good look in his closet.  Mr. Bloomp can hold on for just a bit longer. I need to meet with Mr. Vision one more time.”  Phoenix left for the door, with Maggey and Maya following not far behind as always.  

“So we've got what we need from here, sir?”  Maggey asked.

“Chocolate, tape, and a an interesting set of memos,” Phoenix listed as the girls arrived at the door.  “I'm sure they'll mix interestingly with the evidence the prosecution will provide.”

–

“Terry Vision.”  Phoenix stood in the Bonker's lobby once again, his companions at his side, as the small man leaned against a trash can, tapping his foot.  He had everything he needed for a show down with the psyche locks “I would like to ask you again to talk about your history in this company, if you don't mind.”

“I came here to dress like a funny looking tiny orange man.  Do I need to elaborate on these kinda things?  You're really starting to aggravate me, digging into things that have nothing to do with this case.”  With another glare from Terry the three psyche locks manifested once again, but this time Phoenix had with him the keys to the truth.  “What do you need to bug me about now?”

“You say that the competition to be Mr. Bonker's heir was nothing out of the ordinary, right?” Nick inquired.

“There were resumes, interviews, all of that jazz,” Terry replied.  “Anything about that sound weird to you?  Do you need to know how I dressed on the day of the interview, you freakazoid?”

“If it was so weird, then how come an investigative reporter recently tried to break in to investigate the so called 'Bonker's hiring scandal? ”  Terry twitched involuntarily as a first psyche lock shattered.  

“How do you know she wasn't just trying to break in to steal some candy samples?”  Terry asked, trying his best to cover up his footsteps and lower Phoenix's suspicions.  Sadly for Mr. Vision Phoenix was already on the trail with no way of being stopped by tricky suspects.  “That wouldn't be the first time our candy has driven people to commit breaking and entering!”

“I believe know the woman in question.  If my hunch is right I think she'd be more likely to go after a big scoop than a big snack, even if she has gotten a bit bigger herself in recent times.”

“Well, just because someone is sneaking around looking for treasure in our trash doesn't mean that they're gonna find any,” Terry shot back, having returned to his cool, collected demeanor.

“It's too bad she wasn't looking in the right place or she could have lit the tabloids up.  I was snooping through Mr. Bonker's desk hoping to find any information on the case and I found some notes left about his five new hires.”

“You found what?”  Terry's heart started to race, his eyes bulging out as as sweat began to trail down his frantic face.  “Should you really be snooping around in the desk of the dearly departed?  You might find things you don't want to find!”   A second psyche lock shattered.

“But I was looking for things I wanted to find.  Jimmy wasn't the only person working here, so what's to say one of your coworkers might have done it?  As an attorney I can leave no stone unturned.  I even have to look at you.”

“At me? Whaddaya mean?”  

“You were the first person to drop out of Billy's program, and from then on you went on to start a few of your own business ventures.  Unfortunately, neither of them worked out well for you, and soon you came back looking for a job.  Is that how the story goes?”  Terry winced and weakly, defeated, looked up to Nick's eyes like a puppy pleading for clemency after making a mess of its owner's slippers.

“Goopa Loopa doopa de damn!”  He yelped, slumping down and hanging his head sadly

“You got me kid, I was dumb back in those days.”  The last psyche lock disappeared, leaving Terry Vision vulnerable and ready to tell the truth.  “I was caught up in some crazy business ideas, you know?  I wanted to speak to the younger generation, and you know what the younger generation wanted?”

“Tasty treats with lots of high calories?”  Maya said, licking her lips.

“That and more, kiddo.  They wanted extreme!  They wanted skateboards, space marines, and explosions by the gallon, and guess what?  That doesn't mix well with candy at all!  I mean sure, it caught the eyes of a few focus groups and it sold well at the start, but it didn't last at all.  It didn't have that timeless charm that Bonker's candy has and my candy business went kaput in a flash!”

“And I'm not sure that Gummy Skateboards with real explosion taste would sell that way, no matter how many space marines you put on the package.”

“When it wasn't an instant success I blamed it all on Billy and I rage quit!  I packed my bags off and ran to Hollywood to pursue my real dream!”  Terry sighed plaintively, struck by nostalgia.  

“Well, that is the place you ought to be!”  Maggey said, caught up in Terry's recollections.

“You know what I wanted to be back then?  An action star!” Terry shouted dramatically, complete with sweeping hand motions that nearly hit Nick in the knee.  “I wanted to be the next Arnold Van Dam or the next Jackie Lee.”  Terry kicked and punched at the air and Phoenix, struck by this revelation, quickly slapping his hand over his mouth as he fought vainly not to laugh at the image of this tiny man as an action hero.  Even Maya and Maggey, whose hearts ached from Terry's streak of rebellion, could hardly refrain from snickering in the poor man's face.

“See why I said I'm stupid?  I thought I could make it as an action movie star, but no matter how much I showed the big execs my scripts for Dwarf Star in the Year 3000 and Agent Elf and they laughed me outta their offices!  I was stuck playing furry forest creatures in sci-fi flicks and extras in Christmas movies, and I hated it!  So you know what?  I came back!  I begged for the man to give me a job and I got one!”

“But you're still stuck playing a tiny comic relief figure,” Phoenix observed, still trying to resist belly laughing at the poor little fellow.

“A tiny comic relief figure with dignity!  Everyone loves Goopa Loopa but they hate tiny teddy bears that pop up in their space combat movies.  I gotta say I like this job enough.  It's not ritzy, but it works, so I thank Mr. Bonker for it.  Besides, if it wasn't for him I would've never met my lovely wife!”

“Your lovely wife?”  Phoenix asked.  Since Terry, like the other Billy Bonker's employees, wore gloves, Phoenix could see no ring from which he could deduce Terry's marital status.

“Yep, I know its not the best thing for a business man to do, hookin up with a lady at the job, but that woman took my heart!  She melted me into putty!”  

“Oooh, I do think my ears are burning!”  A peppy, giggly voice filled up the lobby, so high and squeaky it could have shattered Maggey's glasses where the frequency a touch higher.  “Is my hubby wubby talking about little ole me?”  The rhythmic tapping of high heels could be heard from down the hall, the tapping coming closer each moment.

“There my sweety comes right now!”  Terry's face glowed as he wrung his hands in anticipation, his face glowing like a kid on Christmas as a large globe of a figure turned the corner and began to hurry towards Terry with open arms.

“Terry doll!”

“Baby!”  

“Sweet mother of a mounds bar, what is that?”  Nick gasped as Terry hugged the enormous woman, whose body was practically en enormous globe supported by dainty feet in a pair of sparkly purple pumps.  She was simply round, looking as if fat had been pumped into her to give her the figure of a huge beach ball, clad in a vividly purple spandex outfit which only served to make her spherical figure much more apparent.

“Look at them, its so sweet!” Maggey sighed as Terry sunk into the body of his wife.

“She looks like a huge blueberry!  It makes me wish I had some blueberry pie!”  Maya chuckled.

“I've seen everything today,” Nick groaned to himself.

“Guys, this is my wife, Indigo,” Terry presented the gigantic woman.

“Hi, its a pleasure to meet you all, for sure!”  She chortled girlishly, wiggling her fingers at Phoenix and his companions.

“Indigo Poppins?  You were one of the candidates to be the next in line to Billy Bonker, weren't you?”  Phoenix asked the bloated woman.  As Phoenix investigated the woman it seemed that not just her clothing was purple, but also her make-up.  Her lipstick was a deep grape, her eyeliner a glittery eye-liner, and even her cheeks seemed to have a violet tint.  (someone has a favorite color, don't they?)

“Oooh, astute and totally cute!  You need to be careful Terry Bear with this young man on the prowl!”  she chuckled and winked at Phoenix, who tried not to jump from the enormous woman's advances.  “But I'm not Indigo Poppins anymore, I'm Mrs. Vision now!  And who is this bundle of cute in a blue suit?”  

“This is Phoenix Wright, Purply Poo.  He's here to defend Jimmy in court, so he's here to ask all the tough questions, honey.”  

“Wrighty-poo, is it?  Are you going to take good care of Jimmy?”  she implored.  “He's a good boy, you know, but he's gotten himself into something mighty sad!  You won't leave him hanging, will you?”

“Nick would never leave an innocent client hanging, ma'am!” Maya said, slapping Nick on the back.  “He's got a winning record!”  

“Yeah, listen to her!”  Maggey smacked Nick on the back as well.  “Mr. Wright helped me out twice!”

“I think one of you dislocated something,” Nick groaned, straining as he rubbed his back.  “And then the other popped it right back in!”

“I do believe you'll do a fine job!”  she chortled.  “But if you bring Jimmy a nice chewy innocent verdict then I'll make sure to cook a blueberry pie for all of you!”

“We'll take two each!”  Maya and Maggey cheered out, their eyes gleaming.

“I'll just have a slice, please,” Nick said, the extraordinary appetites of the women causing him to lose his own.

“Oooh, then I can take the rest of yours honey!”  She chuckled, before grabbing her husband by the ear and tugging him down the hall.  “Terry Poo, shouldn't we leave Nickie Wickie and his little friends to do their work?  We have our own, after all!  We still need to prepare that new song for the Goopa Loopa fall ad campaign!”

“Good luck, kiddo!”  Terry said, waving to Nick as he was pulled away.  “Do it for Soopa Doopa, okay?”  Maya smiled as she watched the couple duck away into a nearby office.  

“Aren't they just adorable?”  Maya noted.

“In the same way naked mole rats are, maybe,” Phoenix said, shaking his head.  “Anyway, we now know a little bit more about the history about this company.  It looks like there are still some more cavities we need to brush out, though!  I think we can look away from the Visions for the moment, but now I've got a new focus.”

“What would that be, sir?”  Maggey asked.

“We're going to stop by the security office.  I've got a little puzzle for Octavius.”