Disclaimer: Phoenix Wright is owned by the good people at Capcom and not by me. I also don’t own Vinny’s Lullaby. It’s from the 1985 Alvin and the Chipmunk special entitled A Chipmunk Reunion. So I guess Ross Bagdasarian owns it. Either way, it’s not mine.

Author’s Note: Wow, I haven’t published a fanfic in about 7 years. Anyway, this fanfic is kind of AU (some aspects aren't canon), it’s pretty fluffy (Mia/Diego romance, Mia/Pearl family) and there is a small spoiler from 3-5 (it’s kind of said in passing, but just in case, I’ll label it as a spoiler). I hope you all enjoy it!

***

“Pearly!” Mia exclaimed as she opened her apartment door.

“Mystic Mia!” Pearly squealed, running into Mia’s arms. Mia scooped the girl up and held her against her chest.

“Look at you, you’ve gotten so big!” Mia said, tickling Pearl under her chin, causing the young girl to giggle. “Has it really been a year?”

Morgan cleared her throat in annoyance. Yeah, the scene was cute, but Morgan didn’t like seeing Pearl getting along with an older woman who wasn’t her. Mia turned her attention away from Pearl and smiled at her aunt.

“Hello, Aunt Morgan,” Mia said politely. “It’s so nice to see you again. How have you been?”

“I can’t say I approve of this,” Morgan said with a small scoff. “But I had no other choice. My darling little Pearl is such a pure, innocent creature and I didn’t want her to be exposed to the dirty, tainted city until she was much older.”

Mia mentally rolled her eyes at how over-dramatic her aunt was, but outwardly showed nothing but respect and compassion for Morgan. “Don’t worry, Aunt Morgan, Pearl won’t go outside the apartment until you come back tomorrow morning, I promise.”

“Hmph. Be sure she doesn’t. Also, no visitors. Pearl has no experience with anybody from outside the village, and when she finally does meet someone, I want to be there to supervise. Is that understood?”

“Yes, Aunt Morgan, and don’t worry, I’m not expecting anyone tonight. I usually stay in on Friday nights anyway, so there’s no need to be concerned. I don’t really have a life outside of work.” Mia answered with a small laugh.

“Good.” Morgan replied, completely ignoring Mia’s attempt at humor and shoving a backpack towards her. “These are all of Pearl’s things that she’ll need for the overnight trip. Emergency numbers are in the front pocket.” She then bent down slightly to kiss Pearl, who was still settled in Mia’s arms. “Goodbye, my precious Pearl! Be a good girl, I’ll be back first thing in the morning to pick you up.”

“Bye-bye, Mommy,” Pearl replied, throwing her arms around her mother’s neck. “I love you.”

“I love you too, sweetie-pie,” Morgan said in the sweetest voice possible. When she detached herself from Pearl, however, her cold demeanor returned.

“Remember what I told you, Mystic Mia-“

“No leaving the apartment and no visitors, don’t worry Aunt Morgan.”

“Hmph.” Morgan bent down to kiss Pearl once again before leaving. Pearl waved to her from the door until she was out of sight.

As soon as Morgan was gone, Mia let out a breath she had probably been holding since Morgan first arrived. She loved seeing Pearl, but Aunt Morgan could be trying at times. Mia loved her aunt of course, but how a woman who was capable of being so cold could have a daughter as sweet as Pearl was just beyond Mia.

Pearl proved not to need much maintenance. For a 3-year-old, Pearl was very mature and self-sufficient. She still liked to have fun though, and Mia spent the day doing just that with her pretzel-headed cousin. Most of the day was spent coloring, playing with some stuffed animals, and just talking to one another about what was going on in each other’s lives. Pearl was curious to know what a “dee-fence attur-nee” did and Mia asked about what was going on in Kurain Village and how her sister Maya was doing. Both had a great time with the other, and Mia was so happy that she said yes to taking care of Pearl. A Friday night that normally would have been boring, uneventful, and spent watching marathons of Law and Order, was now one of the greatest Fridays she’d had in a long time, thanks to Pearl. But little did Mia know that her day was about to get much more interesting…

***

Before Mia knew it, it was already 6:30.

“Wow, it’s dinnertime. Pearly, are you hungry?” Mia asked the small girl. Pearl simply nodded her head. “Anything you really have a taste for?”

Pearl’s face grew thoughtful and she bit her thumb softly. “Not really.” She finally replied.

“How about some pasta? Does that sound good?”

“Sure! I love pasta!” Pearly squeaked with a smile on her face.

Mia could not help but smile at how adorable her baby cousin was. Pearl managed to be cuter than a basket full of puppies when asked about something as simple as dinner.

“Great! It’ll be about 15 minutes, okay Pearly?”

Pearl nodded again and sat down at the dinner table. Soon enough, the pasta was ready and Mia and Pearl had started their meal together. Their meal was spent mostly in silence and was pretty uneventful. But as soon as they were finished, they heard the doorbell ring.

“Hmm,” Mia said as she stood up. “I’m not expecting anybody, I wonder who that could be…”

Pearl looked up at Mia with big questioning eyes. Mia said, “Hey Pearly, how about you brush your teeth and get ready for bed? I’ll be in in a few minutes to tuck you in.”

Pearl looked at the table bashfully. “Umm, Mystic Mia?” she asked quietly.

“Yes, Pearly?”

“After I get ready for bed, will you read me a bedtime story?”

Mia beamed at the prospect. It had been so long since she read to a small child. She used to read Maya to sleep all the time. It had become one of Mia’s favorite activities and she was so glad that the opportunity to do so presented itself once again. “Of course I will.” Mia replied as the doorbell rang again. “Pick the book you want me to read and I’ll be in to read to you in a few minutes.”

Pearl’s face lit up and she stood up from her chair and hugged Mia around the legs.

“Thank you, Mystic Mia!” and with that, Pearl ran into Mia’s bedroom to get her things in which to get ready for bed.

Mia couldn’t stop smiling as she walked to the front door. When she opened it, her face quickly changed from a look of total bliss to a look of complete shock.

“D-Diego!” Mia exclaimed, a pink tinge already forming on her face. There he was: Diego Armando. Sexiest defense attorney at Grossberg Law Offices. Even though she had technically been dating him for a few months, the sight of Diego still took Mia’s breath away. He stood in the doorway with his wild black hair that couldn’t be tamed and his trademarked Cheshire-cat grin.

“Well hello there, Kitten,” Diego said as he looked Mia up and down, grinning the whole time. “You look quite gorgeous in that outfit.”

Mia, who gave no thought to what she was wearing, gave herself a quick once over. A black camisole and a simple pair of gray sleep-pants. “Come on, Diego, I’m barely dressed at all.”

“Precisely.”

“A-Anyway, what are you doing here at such a late hour?”

Diego cocked his eyebrow. “Late hour?” he said as he made his way inside and sat on the couch. “Kitten, it’s not even 8:00 yet. The night’s just beginning.”

Mia glanced at the clock on the wall. 7:45. It felt later to her. But maybe that was because it was almost her 3-year-old guest’s bedtime.

“I was wondering if you’d like to go out to dinner with me. My Fridays have been pretty boring lately, and what better way to spend one than to take my favorite kitten out for a night on the town?”

Mia blushed again at being Diego’s “favorite” something, but then it hit her. Pearl. Here. Strange man in the apartment. Death by Auntie Morgan’s rage. Oh crap.

“Sorry, Diego, but I have to ask you to leave.” Mia said, yanking Diego roughly (more roughly than she meant to) off of her couch.

Now it was Diego’s turn to display a shocked expression. “Whoa there, little kitten, why the abrupt change in attitude?”

“Diego, normally I’d say yes, but I already ate-“

“Is that all? Kitten, we could just stay here and watch a movie or something. Just as long as I’m with you, that’s all I care about.”

Mia’s heart beat a little faster in response to Diego’s last comment. “N-no, that’s not the reason, it’s because-“

Suddenly, something grabbed Diego’s attention. A small girl walked out of Mia’s bedroom, holding a book in front of her body that was almost as big as she was.

“Well well, what do we have here?” Diego asked, looking at the little girl.

Pearl’s eyes peeked from behind the book at the strange man in front of her. Pearl had never had much interaction with men, so the sight of Diego scared her a little. She shyly raised the book over her eyes again.

Oh god, Aunt Morgan’s going to kill me… Mia thought worriedly, wondering what she should do next. She decided to walk over to Pearl and knelt down to her level.

“You were taking too long, so I wanted to see where you were.” Pearl whispered to Mia.

“I’m so sorry Pearly, I was at the door longer than I thought,” Mia replied apologetically. She once again scooped Pearl in her arms. “I’ll read to you right now.” Turning to Diego, she said, “Sorry, Diego, but I have to ask you to go. I already have a date tonight.”

Diego raised his eyebrows in surprise before giving Mia an understanding smile. “Quite all right, Kitten. But before I go, can I ask the name of the little girl who got to my Kitten before I did?”

Pearl looked at Diego and buried her face in Mia’s shoulder out of shyness. Mia smiled sympathetically. Well, she’s already seen him, no harm in telling him now. “This is my little cousin, Pearl. My aunt needed someone to babysit her until tomorrow morning. She’s, umm, a little shy around men.”

“I see…” Diego replied.

“I tried to get you to leave because my aunt didn’t want Pearl to meet anybody outside the village this weekend. But I guess that didn’t exactly work out.”

“Well, the last thing I want to do is get my kitten in trouble,” Diego started. “I’ll leave then. But how about tomorrow night?”

“T-that sounds great,” Mia said, beginning to blush again.

“Then it’s a date.” With that, Diego gave Mia a quick peck on the cheek and then started to head out. The sound of the kiss caused Pearl’s head to shoot up and look at Diego.

“U-umm, e-excuse me, s-sir.” Pearl asked nervously. Diego turned around and eyed Pearl questioningly.

“What is it, sweetheart?” he asked, in an uncharacteristic fashion for him. He sounded almost fatherly. Mia was taken aback by his tone and… it warmed her heart a bit.

“Umm…” Pearl began, looking at the floor. “A-are you Mystic M-Mia’s…” Pearl remembered the kiss and immediately lit up, signs that she had once been shy completely disappeared. “Are you Mystic Mia’s special someone?”

Mia quickly turned as red as a tomato. “P-Pearly!” she exclaimed, taken off guard by her little cousin’s perceptiveness and sudden audacity.

“Ha!...” Diego laughed, highly amused now. “Out of the mouths of babes.”

“Diego! D-don’t give her any ideas…”

“Ideas? What do you mean? You’re not denying it, are you, Kitten?”

Pearl gasped in delight, a huge smile plastered on her face. “You ARE Mystic Mia’s special someone!! You asked her on a date, you kissed her on the cheek, and you’re even calling her a pet name! Wow, this is just like a fairy tale!!”

“Ha!... Tell me Pearl, how old are you?”

“Three and two quarters.” Pearl proudly answered.

“Well, I see brains run in the Fey family. Your cousin’s pretty sharp, Mia.”

“I- umm, I,” Mia began, her face still red. “Diego, it’s past Pearl’s bedtime, I really think you should go.”

“No, Mystic Mia, he can’t go now!” Pearl protested. “He’s your special someone, he should be by your side forever! Mr. Diego, would you like to read a bedtime story with us?”

Diego looked down at Pearl and smiled warmly. “Well, I’ve never turned down an invitation from a cute girl before. What do you say, Kitten, can I hear a bedtime story too?” And now, every time Diego called Mia “Kitten,” Pearl would lightly squeal with delight.

In addition to Pearl’s huge eyes being filled with hope and excitement, Mia was also confronted with Diego giving her a mock pout and puppy dog eyes. How could she say no now?

“All right, all right, you guys win,” Mia said, with a playful sigh of defeat, plopping down on the couch. “I’ll read you both a story.”

Pearl cheered and bounced up and down in Mia’s lap, where she was now situated. “Mr. Diego, you sit right here.” Pearl said matter-of-factly, patting the part of the sofa right next to Mia. “You’re Mystic Mia’s special someone, so you should sit right next to her.”

“You’re the boss,” Diego grinned as he took his seat next to Mia. He put his arm around her for good measure, which made Pearl even happier.

Mia wouldn’t say it out loud, but she was in heaven. She brought Pearl closer to her and snuggled into Diego before picking up the book. On the cover were two anthropomorphic cats, one brown and the other black. The brown kitty looked like she was worriedly gluing pieces of a vase together while the black kitty was crying in the midst of the wreckage. “Let’s see what we have here. The Kitty Sisters and the Broken Urn by Elise Deauxnim.”

“She’s the best author ever!!” Pearl exclaimed. “She draws really pretty pictures and writes really good stories!! This one is my absolute favorite!”

Mia looked at the cover a little closer and couldn’t help but think that the scene looked really familiar. But those thoughts were quickly shoved to the back of her mind.

“Well, I’ve never read it, but if you’re saying it’s your favorite, then it must be good,” Mia replied, smiling at Pearl and moving even closer to Diego. “Let’s begin:”

And Mia began to read the book to Pearl and Diego. Mia and Diego were snuggled together and little Pearl was sitting on Mia’s lap. They looked like a young family.

For a book written for small children, Mia and Diego couldn’t help but find the story and the pictures fascinating. And the story had a good moral at the end: your family will always love you and help you no matter what you do. And with a soft “the end,” Mia closed the book and turned her eyes towards a drowsy Pearl. “How was that, Pearly?”

With a yawn, Pearl looked up at Mia and smiled. “That was great! You’re really good at reading stories, Mystic Mia!”

“She’s right, Kitten,” Diego agreed, eyes on Mia. “That was quite an impressive bit of storytelling.”

Mia grinned sheepishly due to all the praise she was receiving. “Oh come on guys, I just read the book, I didn’t write it,” she chuckled. Pearl yawned again and snuggled herself against Mia’s chest. “Are you sleepy, Pearly?”

“Not really.” Pearl replied, struggling to keep her eyes open. Mia and Diego looked at each other and smiled. That was when Mia was hit by a great idea; a sure-fire way to get Pearl to sleep. She’d used to do it when she wanted to get Maya to go to sleep. Mia smiled softly to herself and looked at Pearl with love in her eyes.

“Well then,” Mia said, standing up with Pearl cradled in her arms. “I suppose we have to fix that. It is your bedtime, after all.”

Pearl sleepily looked up at Mia and smiled. She was pretty sure she knew what Mia had in mind. And since her mother did it rarely, she was really looking forward to it. “Are you going to sing to me?”

“MmmHmm.” Mia answered with a nod. “My mother used to sing this song to me when I was a little girl. And I always fell right to sleep.”

Pearl smiled again and nestled herself into Mia’s arms. Mia began to sing and Diego stared at the two of them, smiling at the sweet scene of Mia gently rocking Pearl back and forth.

Hush your thoughts little one
Close your eyes little one
Dream time is near
You needn't fear
And when you wake, I will be here

As Mia was in the middle of the song, she felt a strong pair of hands on her shoulders. Diego gently swung to Mia’s side, still holding her shoulders. A male voice soon joined Mia’s in song and Mia felt her heart grow even warmer:

Rest your head little one
Dream sweet dreams little one
The stars say goodnight
I say sleep tight
And when you wake, I will be here

And when you wake, I will be here.

Mia sang the last line solo, and as she trailed off, she looked down and found that Pearl was fast asleep in her arms. Mia smiled softly and turned to Diego.

“I’m going to put her to bed,” she whispered to him. “I’ll be right back.”

Diego nodded and grinned. Mia walked into her bedroom and tucked Pearl into bed. Before leaving, Mia gave her cousin a little kiss on the forehead. Then she gently closed the door and walked back to Diego.

As soon as Mia returned to Diego, she was welcomed back with a passionate kiss on the lips. When they broke apart, Mia found herself lost in Diego’s eyes.

“Diego,” she whispered.

“Now I’m more certain than ever, Mia,” Diego said, gently wrapping his arms around Mia’s waist.

Mia was now a bit confused. “Certain of what, Diego?”

“That you’re the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with,” he said, kissing her on the lips once again. “I saw a side of you tonight I’ve never seen before. And it was beautiful. You were so beautiful when you were singing to Pearl.”

Mia bashfully looked at her feet. “I could say the same to you Diego,” she replied, wrapping her arms around his neck. “I had no idea you were capable of being so fatherly. Or that you had such a nice singing voice.” She said the last sentence with a light laugh.

Diego smirked. “It was all you, Kitten. I saw you singing to Pearl, and some kind of force brought me to my feet and joined you. That’s never happened to me before. Usually I’m the one who forces another to her feet. You truly are one special woman, Mia.”

The comment made Mia blush once again. “You’d make a pretty good father, Diego.”

“And you’d make an even better mother,” He brought Mia against his chest and hugged her tightly. “One day, Mia. One day we’ll have our own family.”

“I’d love that. So…much…” Mia felt her eyes grow heavy and Diego realized that she was about to fall asleep. He sat her down on the couch and let her rest her head against him. She was soon asleep against his shoulder. Luckily, Diego remembered what Mia had said about her Aunt Morgan not wanting visitors in the apartment while Pearl was there. So he gently cradled Mia in his arms and carried her to her bed. He placed Mia beside Pearl and pulled up the covers. Giving Mia one more soft kiss on the lips, Diego turned around and left quietly.

He didn’t see her, but when Diego kissed Mia, one of Pearl’s little eyes were open, watching the whole scene. She smiled and gradually fell back asleep, thrilled that she had actually witnessed true love; the love of Mia and her special someone.

THE END

Oh, I also liked the title of the book Mia was reading, "The Kitty Sisters and the Broken Urn" by Elise Deauxnim. It must have felt really wierd for Mia to read that book, since her mother wrote it who got her inspiration from Mia and Maya.
Nice detail!

Disclaimer: Phoenix Wright belongs to Capcom and not me

Author’s Note: Remember when I said I probably wouldn’t write anything else until my schoolwork was done? Yeeeah, procrastination is fun. Part of my research paper is on empathy in infants, one thought led to another, and this little story was born. This was written at about 1:30 AM when I was half asleep, so the plot is kinda silly. But I think it actually turned out pretty well. It’s meant to be light-hearted, so don’t take it too seriously.

Also, I’ve been meaning to write of a situation in which Mia knows exactly what she’s doing and Diego’s the unsure one. So my procrastination works out in the end! Anyway, I’m gonna shut up now and let you read, enjoy!

***

Mia was sprawled out on the couch in her apartment. She was reading a book she had been meaning to catch up on. Luckily for her, it was the weekend; she could just kick back, relax, and not worry about anything work-related for the next two days.

She continued reading when she heard a knock on her door. Looking up, she gave a puzzled “hmm.” “Who is it?” she called out.

“It’s Diego, Kitten!” the voice on the other side of the door called out. But Diego didn’t sound quite like himself. She couldn’t quite place it. Could it be… stress?

“Be right there!” Mia leapt off the couch and walked over to the door. Nothing could have prepared her for what was on the other side.

Diego Armando stood in the doorway with an infant cradled in his arms and a diaper bag over his shoulder. Mia was completely flabbergasted at the sight.

“Diego?” she asked, surprise evident in her voice, as she cocked her head to the side.

“I’ll explain everything, Kitten,” Diego answered breathlessly as he shifted the baby in his arms. “Can I come in?”

“O-Of course, take a seat.”

Diego entered Mia’s apartment, sat on her couch, and placed the diaper bag on the floor. Mia had so many questions, but she didn’t know where to start. She eventually sat next to him and smiled down at the baby in his arms.

“May I ask who this little cutie is?” Mia asked, her smile growing larger.

“Oh, yeah,” Diego answered, seeming distracted and uncomfortable. “This is my niece, Marisol. My brother-in-law’s in the emergency room and my sister needed someone to watch the baby for a few hours. Since I live closest to her, she came to me.”

This raised even more questions for Mia. Now she really didn’t know where to start. “You never told me you had a sister.” She decided to go with.

“Yeah, well, Maria and I don’t talk very often. We’re both very busy, so we don’t really meet up unless there’s some kind of emergency.”

Mia looked at Diego, nonplussed expression on her face. He wasn’t acting like his usual arrogant, cocky self. He kept fidgeting, and seemed almost nervous. Mia decided to cut to the chase.

“Diego, tell me what’s wrong. You’re not acting like yourself.” She prodded, concern in her voice.

Diego’s usual tone returned for a brief moment. “Heh, can’t get anything past you, can I, Kitten?” He then returned to his worried tone. “Umm, I actually have a small favor to ask you.”

Mia raised one eyebrow. “What kind of-“ that was when she was hit with a familiar smell. Mia looked at Marisol and back at Diego. A huge smile covered Mia’s face and she started to laugh. It all made sense now.

“Give her to me, Diego,” Mia laughingly replied, holding her arms out. “Lucky for you, I have experience with babies.”

Diego gave a huge sigh of relief and handed Marisol over to Mia. “Thanks, Kitten,” he said exasperatedly. “You’re a life-saver.”

“Why hello there, sweetheart,” Mia said in baby-talk to the bundle in her arms. “I bet I know what would make you happy.” Mia tickled Marisol’s stomach with one finger, causing the infant to giggle. Returning to her normal voice, she turned back to Diego. “Honestly, Diego, this is what you were so worried about?”

As soon as the baby was out of Diego’s arms, his usual self was restored. “Well, Kitten, I know next to nothing about taking care of babies.”

Mia slung the diaper bag over her shoulder and made her way into her bedroom. “You don’t even know how to change a diaper and your sister left her baby with you!?” She asked incredulously.

“Like I said before, my brother-in-law’s in the hospital,” Diego continued as he followed Mia into her bedroom, confidence back in his voice. “He broke his leg in a skiing accident. My sister had to rush over to the ER and needed someone to watch Marisol. I’m the family member who lives closest to her, so she came to me. I told her I had no idea how to take care of a baby, but she was so frantic that she didn’t listen and just left the kid with me.”

“I see…” Mia answered a little distractedly. She spread a small towel on her bed and placed Marisol on top of it.

“When Marisol… umm… went, I kind of panicked. I had no idea what to do, and I was especially worried because she wasn’t crying. I thought she might be sick or something. So I came to you and here we are now.”

Mia chuckled lightly as she started changing Marisol. “Babies don’t always cry when they soil themselves, Diego,” she said with her back turned to him. “Some babies are actually comforted by the extra warmth.”

Diego smirked as he watched Mia changing Marisol. “Heh, I guess I know that now. Anyway, you say you’ve had some experience with babies, Kitten?” he asked with a sly smile, sounding genuinely interested. “Mind telling me?”

Mia replied as she was reaching for the wipes. “Have you forgotten?” she asked as she mirrored his smirk. “I have a sister who’s ten years younger than I am.” She smiled fondly at the memory. “I was ten when I found out I was going to have a little sister. I was so excited, I couldn’t wait to be a big sister. I wanted to be the best big sister ever, and help my mom in whatever way I could. So I asked my mom to tell me everything about babies. She taught me how to feed, change, burp, she basically taught me all the… well, basics of child care.”

Diego nodded, finding Mia’s story sweet. He waited for her to continue. Mia grew a little more somber as she went on.

“When mom disappeared, I had to become Maya’s primary caregiver. She was two at the time, so she didn’t require as much attention as an infant. But she still needed to be taken care of.” Mia’s somber tone changed and she gave a small laugh as she started to put the new diaper on Marisol. “Maya wasn’t quite potty-trained when mom left. She was potty-training but she wasn’t trained. I finished potty-training her as quickly as possible. I thought it would be easier on both of us. To this day, I still think of potty-training Maya as one of my proudest accomplishments.” She laughed and looked down at Marisol, job now finished.

“There you go, sweetie,” Mia said in a baby voice again, lifting Marisol off the bed. “That feels better now, doesn’t it?” Mia tickled Marisol again and the baby erupted in laughter. Diego smiled at how cute the two of them were.

“Thank you, Mia,” he said gratefully. “I owe you one.”

Mia laughed and stood on her tiptoes to give Diego a peck on the cheek. Diego’s eyes grew wide and he stared at Mia.

“What was that for?” He asked. Though he was confused, he was still grinning, liking the fact that he just got a kiss from his kitten.

“For being so cute earlier,” Mia answered. “I used to think that nothing fazed you. That you were calm and collected in any situation. But your vulnerable side came out today, and I have to say, I liked it. Who would have thought that Diego Armando, star defense attorney, was afraid of changing diapers?” She snickered at the last line.

“Hey now, let’s not be hasty,” Diego said calmly and with cockiness. “Who said I was afraid? I would have done it if I had known how. That’s why I came to you.”

Mia was still skeptical. “Sure, Diego, sure.” She said with a light-hearted roll of the eyes.

“It’s true, Kitten.” he said with a light chuckle as he placed his hands on her waist. Suddenly, he was interrupted by his cell phone. Mmm, fragrance of dark coffee… he flipped it open and spoke to the person on the other line.

“Hey, sis… yeah, Marisol’s just fine… okay… sure, I’ll be right over. See you soon.” Hanging up the phone, he turned to Mia. “That was my sis. She wants me to give Marisol back now.”

Mia handed the baby back to Diego. “Here you go, back to Uncle Diego.” Marisol giggled once again as she was being passed from person to person. They walked back to the door and Diego gave Mia a kiss on the lips.

“Thanks again, Kitten.” He said as they broke apart.

“It was no problem, Diego, really.” Mia replied with light laugh.

“How about I take you to dinner tonight, to show my gratitude?”

“That sounds lovely,” Mia answered with another smile. “I’ll be here.”

“Perfect. See you later, Kitten.”

“Bye, Diego. And bye-bye, Marisol.” Mia said in her baby voice as she tickled the baby under the chin. Diego gave Mia one last kiss and was out the door.

When Mia closed the door, she realized that she couldn’t wipe the smile from her face. Finally. There was finally an instance where Mia was in control and Diego was the lost kitten. Laughing once more at the whole situation, Mia walked into her bedroom to find an outfit to wear to dinner.

THE END

***

End Note: I recently started another Mia/Diego fic (that one will have no babies or small children in it, I promise), but that one REALLY won’t be completed until after I’m done with work. If I have enough inspiration to finish that one, I’ll publish it. Thanks for reading!

Disclaimer: I don’t own Phoenix Wright, Capcom does.

Author’s Note (READ THIS BEFORE READING): All right, my first T rated PW fic! This is a little different from the stuff I’ve written so far. This is a short and silly story that came to my mind one night while I was procrastinating. Mia’s a little OOC, but that’s to be expected. And as a small note, I play around with a drinking myth for the sake of a story.

Again, there are some implications of bisexuality. The references aren’t the main focus of the story, but if you’re not into that stuff, you may not enjoy this (I say this b/c I don’t want to be flamed). ALSO THE MISSPELLINGS AND LACK OF SPACES ARE INTENTIONAL. OK, enough from me, Enjoy!

***

Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea, Diego thought as he looked at his girlfriend across the table. Mia was completely intoxicated. She was laughing hysterically at God knows what and her face was bright red.

Mia had never had a glass of alcohol in her life. Not even in college. Mia said she was “too wrapped up in her studies to go to any parties”. Diego thought she needed the experience of drinking alcohol at least once, and bought a bottle of Pinot Grigio for both of them to share. He thought she would appreciate the taste. “A classy wine for a classy lady” he grinned as he poured her a glass. Unfortunately for Mia, she enjoyed the wine a little too much. She had about two and a half glasses of the stuff, which isn’t really too much, but Mia learned that night that she had a very low alcohol tolerance. Diego was both amused and disturbed by her behavior, and he was glad they were in the safety of his apartment as opposed to being in public.

“Diego, I wanna tell you a couple of things.” Mia slurred, ceasing her laughter and looking into Diego’s sharp eyes with her tired, glossy ones.

Diego cocked an eyebrow and grinned. “What is it, Kitten?” he asked.

“Do you—doyou know Lana Skye?”

“The detective? Yeah, we’ve worked on some of the same cases,” Diego replied, having absolutely no idea where this conversation was going. “Why?”

“Isn’t she hot?” Mia asked with complete seriousness.

Diego was taken completely off-guard by Mia’s question and spit out the coffee he was drinking (apparently Diego enjoys coffee with his wine.) “Could… could you repeat that, Kitten?” he sputtered, his usual cockiness failing him.

“Do you think she’s hot? Iwan-I wanna male opinion on this. We kinda had a thing in college, y’know? Did I tell you we were together in college?”

“Wait, wait,” Diego said, still in the process of getting over his shock. “You were in a relationship with Detective Skye in college?!”

“(hic) yeeeeeeah…” Mia answered, smile slowly creeping up her face as the memories came back to her.

Diego had to admit, imagining those two together was pretty hot, but he was confused about something. “Kitten, are you… a lesbian?” he slowly asked.

Mia giggled wildly before answering. “heehee, if I were, would Ibe dating you, silly? I’mnot a lesbian, but I like girls. At the very least I’m bi,” she hiccupped at the end of her sentence. Her expression suddenly turned from one of mirth to one of solemnity. “That… that doesn’t make you love me any less, does it?” she asked in a childlike voice, eyes starting to fill up with tears.

Oh boy, she’s one of those drunks, Diego thought to himself, shaking his head with a small smile on his face. He stood up from his chair, positioned himself behind Mia, and gave her a big hug.

“Everything about you is beautiful,” he whispered in her ear. “Everything you are is beautiful. I love you for you, and nothing will ever change that.” With that, Diego gave Mia a peck on the cheek.

“Great!” Mia yelled in Diego’s ear, shattering the tender moment (and his eardrum.) Diego’s hand shot up to his ear and he winced in pain. “Because I also slept with Grossberg!”

Diego forgot the pain in his ear, and locked his eyes on Mia, an indescribable look of horror on his face.

Mia began to laugh hysterically. She even started snorting, she was laughing so hard. When her chuckles began to die down, she shook her head. “Nonono, that wasa joke, I wanted to see how you would react. And it was SO WORTH IT!” Mia erupted into maniacal laughter again as Diego let out a huge sigh of relief. “The Lana thing was true though, heehee.”

“Kitten, don’t scare me like that. You almost gave me a heart attack.” He reached for his cup of coffee and took another swig.

“OMG irony!!” Mia said, pointing to Diego and starting to laugh again.

Diego raised an eyebrow. “…Did you just say OMG?” he asked, stifling another laugh.

“(hic)… yeah… you gotta problem wit that?”

Diego chuckled to himself. “I don’t think I’m going to buy you another alcoholic beverage for a long time.”

“No, no,” Mia protested, sitting upright. “We NEED to do this again, like… ummm… every… YEAH! Once every week!! This has been soooo much fun.”

“Ha!...” Diego laughed, smiling to himself again. “I have to admit, you are quite the amusing drunk, Kitten. I had no idea you would go through such a drastic personality change.”

Mia giggled again and stood up. “Diego, you’re suuuuch a sexy boy!” she slurred as she clumsily pumped her fist in front of her. She wavered from side to side and was about to fall over. Luckily, Diego was behind her in an instant to catch her.

“Whoaaa, easy there, Kitten,” he said as Mia burst out laughing again. “Wouldn’t want a pretty little kitty like you to get hurt now, would we?”

Mia, still in Diego arms, began to blush. She looked up at Diego and smiled. “Oh Diego, I lo-“ she slapped her hand over her mouth.

Diego grinned again as he lifted Mia back to her feet. He thought it was cute that she was being shy now. “You can tell me, Kitten, we both already know it.” He said gently.

Mia pushed herself out of Diego’s arms. “I think I’m gonna be sick!” she said urgently as she stumblingly ran into the bathroom. She kneeled herself before the almighty porcelain god and purged the evil out of her body.

Diego walked over to Mia and kneeled behind her. He held her hair behind her head as she continued to vomit. After a few minutes, Mia took a couple of deep breaths and slumped over the bowl, experience apparently taking a toll on her.

Diego soothingly rubbed her back. “Do you feel any better now?” he asked softly.

Mia grunted and lifted her head up. “Ye-yeah. That felt pretty good,” she said quietly, seeming a lot calmer now.

“Is it all right if I pick you up? Can you handle that?”

Mia turned to him and smiled sickly, a little bit of vomit on her chin. “I’d like that.”

Diego grabbed a tissue and wiped the sickness off of Mia’s face. He gently cradled her in his arms and lifted her up. When she was comfortably in Diego’s arms, Mia rested her head against his chest and purred. Diego’s pet name for her suited her perfectly. He smiled at this realization and gave her a little squeeze.

They finally arrived in the bedroom and Diego lowered Mia onto the bed. He propped her upper body against the head board.

“Stay here, Kitten.” he said, knowing that Mia probably wouldn’t get up, even if she wanted to; she was so ill she could barely move.

Mia groaned, but she still had a small smile on her lips. “Allright.” She replied in a sing-song voice.

Diego left the room but quickly returned with a glass of water and a plate with two slices of white bread. Mia looked over at these items with half-closed eyes. “Hey, isn’tthat what your clients eat everyday?” she asked, voice sounding strained.

“Ha!... I guess that’s one way of putting it,” he sat down next to her and lifted the glass of water to her lips. “Bread and water will help you sober up and make you feel better. Ready?”

Mia nodded and Diego helped her take a few sips of water. “Good girl.” He said encouragingly.

After Mia drank half of the glass, he reached for the bread. “Think you can stomach this?”

“I… Ithink so.”

“All right then. Open wide.” Mia giggled like a child at Diego’s last sentence and opened her mouth. He tore the bread into tiny pieces and slowly fed Mia. “How’s that? Good?”

Mia gave a light laugh. “It’s bread, Diego.”

Diego chuckled as he popped another piece into Mia’s mouth. “Hehe, I know a woman with class such as yourself would prefer something more sophisticated. But right now, we need to focus on getting you better.”

“Ughnnnn.” Mia groaned as she was chewing a piece of bread. She was starting to feel sick again.

“So Mia, what did you learn tonight?” Diego asked as he gently stroked her cheek with the back of his hand.

“Umm… wasI supposed to learn anything tonight?” she slurred.

Diego laughed lightly. “Maybe I should ask you in the morning.” He started to rip another piece of bread off for her.

“Mmm, no more,” she said putting her hand in front of her. “I’m really tired.”

Diego smiled and put the plate down. “All right, Kitten. I’ll let you sleep.”

“Wait,wait,” Mia placed her hand on Diego’s arm. “You’re… not leaving, are you? Could you pleasestay?”

Diego grinned. “I would never leave you, Kitten,” he said as he climbed to her side on the bed. She gave him a weak, awkward kiss on his cheek when he arrived. He placed his arm around her shoulders and she nuzzled her head against his chest. She purred again, which caused Diego to bring her closer to him.

With a yawn, Mia said, “Thank you, Diego,” and her eyes began to close. “I… I love you.” With that, she fell dead asleep on Diego’s chest.

Diego kissed the top of her head. “I love you too, Mia-mine.” He whispered. He watched Mia sleep for a little while before he fell asleep himself, with his kitten still curled up against his chest.

***

Morning arrived and Mia slowly opened her eyes. She immediately shut them again; the light seeping through the blinds was far too bright. She was then aware of an excruciating pain in her head. She hissed and clutched her head in between her hands. All this sound and movement roused Diego from his sleep.

“Well good morning, Kitten,” he said as he looked down at Mia. “How are you feeling?”

“Shhhh, not so loud, Diego,” Mia hushed as she clutched her head tighter. “My head is killing me.”

“Ha!...” Diego laughed loudly, temporarily forgetting Mia’s sensitivity to sound. Mia screamed in pain. “Oh, sorry, Kitten,” he whispered. “Looks like you have quite the hangover. Do you remember anything from last night?”

“Umm…” then it all came flooding back to her. She slumped face down on Diego’s chest and moaned. “Oh god, I made such an ass of myself last night! I’m so sorry, Diego…”

“Hey now, no need to apologize. It was just the two of us. If you’re going to make an ass of yourself, wouldn’t you rather it be with me?”

Mia sighed, face still buried in Diego’s chest. “I guess. But I’d rather not make an ass of myself at all. It’s so beneath me.”

Diego chuckled, stroked the back of Mia’s head, and kissed her. “I’ll ask again: What did you learn last night, Mia?”

Mia groaned, not moving from her current position. “I’m never drinking again!”

“Ha!...” Diego said loudly again, causing another scream of pain from Mia. “Sorry, Kitten.” He continued running his fingers through her hair gently. “Mind if I ask one thing?”

“What?” Mia asked, voice muffled.

He grinned like a tiger that had just caught his prey. “Could you tell me a little more about your college fling with Lana Skye?”



***

End Note: Credit for the “I’m not a lesbian, but I like girls” line goes to a friend of mine XD And as a side note, I’m not really a fan of Mia/Lana, but I thought mentioning the pairing in this kind of situation was fitting.

Also, I’m working on two other Miego fics. One is an AU that includes a baby (that one will be up soon, it’s insanely fluffy and I’m happy with it) and the other one has an odd plot that I currently have writer’s block with. I’m not sure if the latter will make it, but the former eventually will, so keep your eyes out for it.

I'll admit, I've never written a fic like this one before, so I'm a bit nervous about how this will be received. But if you feel inclined to review, please do. Thanks for reading!

Disclaimer: Phoenix Wright is owned by Capcom and not me. I guess I do own Gabriella though.

Author’s Note: This little fic has been in the works for awhile. And since the school year is finished and I don’t have a summer job yet (which I hope to rectify soon, grr), I thought I’d finally finish it.

Anyway, Mia and Diego are my two favorite characters, and Miego is my favorite pairing. Put bluntly, what actually happened to Mia and Diego sucked (it’s brilliant from a psychological/literary perspective, but that’s beside the point). They deserve happiness dammit! So that was kind of the inspiration behind this AU fic. Yay fluff! This may be the fluffiest thing I’ve ever written, so be warned. Sorry my author’s notes are so long, here’s the story! Hope you enjoy!

***

Mia had spent the night in a restless sleep. Her entire day consisted of caring for her five-month-old daughter Gabriella. Motherhood was wonderful and Mia absolutely adored her baby girl, but the child could be exhausting at times. From the early hours of the morning to the late hours at night, Mia had been up and down catering to her baby’s every need. Mia was convinced that her baby would need something before the night was through. But Gabriella hadn’t made a peep in awhile. So Mia slowly started to assume that her baby wouldn’t need anything else for the rest of night. Upon this realization, Mia decided that it was okay to relax. She finally closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep… which lasted about three seconds, because the baby had started wailing again.

“Mmm, Gabby,” Mia murmured, turning to her side. “Mommy’s coming, baby.”

Before she could move another inch, she felt a strong, comforting hand on her arm, gently restraining her. Mia turned her head around and looked at her husband Diego. He looked back at her and flashed his typical grin.

“Let me, Kitten,” he whispered. “You’ve been up and down all day. You need some rest.”

“No, it’s fine,” Mia protested, slowly sitting up. “I’m not that tired. Besides, she needs me.”

Diego looked his wife up and down. Matted hair, huge bags under her eyes, eyes bleary and glazed over; she looked completely and utterly exhausted. “Not that tired” indeed. He wasn’t going to allow her to set foot outside that bed.

“Remember, Kitten,” Diego started, his grin softening. “She’s my baby too. And you’ve been hogging her all day while I’ve been at work.” He said the last part with a playful pout as he gently poked Mia on the nose with his index finger. “I think it’s time for some daddy/daughter bonding time.”

Mia looked at Diego and gave him a tired smile. “I guess you’re right,” Mia sighed. “Okay, Diego, you can take care of her.”

“Well of course I can,” Diego said with his usual cockiness. “I wasn’t taking no for an answer, especially considering the state you’re in. Now lie back down and close your eyes.”

Diego gently cradled Mia’s upper body and helped her back down into bed.

“Mmm, Diego?” Mia asked, her eyes already shut.

“Yes, Kitten?” Diego asked, standing up.

“That’s her hungry cry. There’s breast milk in the fridge that you can warm up.”

Diego chuckled. He thought it was cute that Mia was able to distinguish the baby’s different cries. “I’ll remember that, Kitten.”

“And Diego?”

“Yes?”

“Thank you.” And with that, Mia finally fell fast asleep. Diego placed his hand on Mia’s shoulder again and kissed her on the cheek. Then he left the room to pay a visit to his little daughter.

***

“Gabriella,” Diego said softly in a sing-song voice upon entering the nursery. “Why’s my baby girl crying?”

At hearing the sound of her father’s voice, Gabriella quieted down a bit, but she was still wailing.

Diego went over to the crib and looked down at his daughter. His beautiful daughter. She had big brown eyes and brown hair; the spitting image of her mother. “Come here, princess.” Diego smiled and scooped the baby in his arms.

As soon as Gabriella was cradled in Diego’s arms, her cries stopped. She looked up at her father, smiled widely, and cooed. Diego tickled her chin a little.

“Was that all?” he said playfully while Gabby giggled. “Were you just lonely? Well don’t worry, Daddy’s here now. And he’ll stay right here with you, okay?”

Gabriella reached for her father’s finger with her little hand. Diego gripped her hand in between his thumb and index finger. All was well until Gabriella’s stomach gave a little growl. Upon remembering why she was crying in the first place, Gabriella began to whimper.

“Hmm, I guess Mommy was right,” Diego said to his daughter. “You are hungry. Heh, I should know better than to doubt a mother’s intuition. Come on, Gabby, let’s get you some milk.”

Diego carried Gabriella into the kitchen and got to work warming up the breast milk. Gabriella was still whimpering from hunger, impatient at how long the breast milk was taking to thaw.

“Shhh, don’t worry, princess, it’s almost ready,” Diego comforted as he gently bounced Gabby up and down in his arms. He knew it would be a few minutes before the milk fully thawed, so he began to think of different ways to distract Gabriella until it was ready. Looking up at the kitchen cabinets, he was struck by an idea.

“Hey, baby kitten, I have something to show you,” he started, readjusting the baby in his arms. He opened one of the cabinets to reveal about a dozen bags of coffee. Gabriella looked up at the bags and gave an interested coo.

“This isn’t my entire supply of course, just some of the best blends,” Diego started. He began to talk to Gabriella as if he was a professor giving a lecture. “This is coffee. Really good coffee. Learn how to distinguish the good from the bad. Though as an Armando, you’ll have no trouble telling the two apart at all,” he continued, looking down at his daughter with a soft smile. “Can you say ‘coffee?’”

“Gamabadagayabadaga?” Gabriella babbled questioningly, big smile on her face.

“Close enough,” Diego replied, tickling his baby under the chin again. “I have a craving for some coffee right now, but I’m having a little bit of trouble deciding which blend to drink. Maybe you could help me?”

Gabriella’s arm was already reaching for the cabinet, curious to get a closer look at the inside.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” Diego said, eyes filled with pride at his daughter’s interest in coffee. “All right, which blend should I grace my taste buds with tonight?” he asked as he put his hands under his daughter’s arms and lifted her up to the cabinets. Gabriella giggled at being lifted high into the air. Her huge eyes surveyed the contents of the cabinet for a few seconds before she reached her hand out and slammed it on top of one of the bags. She grabbed it and started pulling it towards her.

“Looks like you’ve found one you’re happy with,” Diego replied, taking the bag from his daughter’s grasp. “Ahhh, blend number 107. A fine choice. In fact, it’s my favorite,” Gabriella giggled and Diego kissed her on the head. “A coffee connoisseur already. You truly are my daughter.”

He poured the coffee grounds into the coffee maker (which was on 24/7 of course), and poured himself a cup of coffee in his new “I Love My Daddy” coffee mug (he received it a month ago from Mia for his birthday, but she claimed that Gabby picked it out.) He took a huge swig from the mug before turning his attention back to the baby.

At that moment, Gabriella looked at Diego’s mug intently. She gave an open-mouthed smile, squealed, and reached for the coffee with her chubby little arms.

“Ha!... A desire for coffee at such a tender age, huh?” Diego laughed, holding the mug out of his baby’s reach. He looked at Gabriella with such warmth. “Sorry, princess, but you’re a little too young for the bitter taste of coffee. You’ll like the milk much better.”

Diego checked the bottle of milk again. It was finally warm enough, so Diego gave it to his daughter.

“I now present a bottle of milk to the hungry baby kitten,” he started. Gabriella literally threw herself at the bottle and started suckling ravenously from it. “Heh heh, told you so. Baby kittens love their milk.”

Gabriella was still sucking from the bottle, but her eyes glanced up periodically to look at her father. Diego’s eyes never left her. Both pairs of eyes were filled with love for the other. Diego walked back into the nursery and sat in the rocking chair by Gabriella’s crib.

When Gabriella had finally finished the contents of the bottle, she detached her mouth from the nozzle and gave a small, contented sigh. Then she burped loudly and snuggled into Diego’s arms.

“Ha!...” Diego exclaimed quietly, putting the bottle down. “That’s my girl.”

Gabriella yawned and her eyes began to close. Diego rocked back and forth in the rocking chair as an attempt to get his baby to sleep sooner. Her eyes finally closed and her soft breathing could be heard. Diego kissed Gabriella on the forehead once again and placed her back in her crib.

He suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder and jumped a little. He turned around to find a very exhausted looking Mia behind him. A tired smile graced her lips as her eyes met Diego’s.

“Kitten,” he whispered. “Aren’t you supposed to be asleep?”

“I was asleep,” she whispered back. “But I couldn’t keep myself in bed. I just had to see you with her.” Mia gave Diego a kiss on the lips. He put his arm around her shoulders and brought her closer to him. They both looked at the sleeping baby in the crib.

“Isn’t she beautiful?” Mia asked, knowing full well what Diego’s answer would be.

“Of course,” Diego said with his trademark grin. “With parents like us she was bound to be beautiful.” He ended the sentence by planting a kiss on Mia’s head. “So why are you awake anyway? You should really be in bed, Mia.”

“Like I said, I wanted to see you with her,” Mia replied as she rested her head on Diego’s shoulder. “You’re so cute when you’re with her. I just had to see it.”

“Were you watching this whole time?”

“Oh, I started watching when she offered her opinion on what kind of coffee you should drink tonight,” Mia replied with a small giggle. “You better not get our baby addicted to coffee before she reaches her first birthday, Diego.”

Diego would have replied with his usual “Ha!...” but he kept himself in check so as not to wake the baby. Instead, he gave a tiny laugh. “Hey, I didn't actually give her any, Kitten. I have enough sense to know not to give a five-month-old coffee. But I can’t help it if she’s interested in coffee. She’s an Armando after all. It’s in her blood.” As he said the last lines, Diego turned back to his daughter and looked at her with fatherly love again. Mia noticed the look on Diego’s face and it warmed her heart to no end.

“You’re a wonderful father, Diego.” She whispered.

With that, they both looked at each other and kissed passionately. They turned their attention back to Gabriella and watched her for a little while longer. After a few minutes, Mia’s eyes began to close and she started going in and out of consciousness on Diego’s shoulder. Diego noticed this and gently nudged Mia.

“All right, Kitten, you should really be in bed. You’re falling asleep standing up,” he supported her body by putting an arm around her waist. “I’ll take you back. If Gabby wakes up again, I’ll take care of her. You just sleep for the rest of the night.”

With a yawn, Mia replied, “All right,” She kissed her hand and placed it gently on Gabriella’s head. “Good night, my darling Gabriella.”

Diego’s arm was still around Mia’s waist in order to steady her. He was going to lead her back into the bedroom and into bed, where she desperately belonged. But before he left, he looked into the crib once more and smiled at his little girl.

“Sweet dreams, my baby kitten.” And with that, Diego and Mia were out the door, and Gabriella was left to dream her sweet dreams for the rest of the night.




End Note: Yup, I told you this was insanely fluffy. There’s really no inspiration behind the name Gabriella, it randomly popped into my mind one night and I thought it was cute, so I went with it. Thanks for reading, and thanks to all of you, reviewers and lurkers, who have supported me so far ^_^