99 Daughters Of Destiny
Watch your thoughts; they become words
Watch your words; they become actions
Watch your actions; they become a habit
Watch your habits; they become character
Watch your character; it becomes your destiny
Maya Fey and Franziska Von Karma
Von Karma Estate, Germany
May 8, 2025, 3:30 PM
Even if she’d been pressed hard, the Agent didn’t think she would have been able to properly elaborate on her currently numbed grieving state if her life had depended on it.
That being said, if further prompted, she supposed she would have likened her despondency to death by a thousand paper cuts, for every time she remembered her loss, it was another cut to her already damaged mind. Even though none of the wounds were enough to kill her, over time, their accumulation further bled her of the humanity she had once had. Where she once had been vibrant and spirited, now she was just gaunt and melancholy.
In the case of relaying the circumstances to her new houseguest, she decided to simply recite the facts, as though recalling historical events about a chronicle that wasn’t her own, which forced her voice to remain level and composed and left little room for a breakdown as she rehashed what had happened.
“Ultimately, Miles got called back to work, and that was that.” Franziska finished dully sometime later, her eyes no longer meeting Maya’s as she stared at the nearly empty contents of her third glass of Jägermeister.
“Dear God.” The psychic shook her head sorrowfully, completely at a loss for words. “So it’s just been you here, all by yourself, ever since this tragedy?”
“Not completely. I do have a house full of doting servants to attend to my needs. Unless I overdo it with the workouts, like I did today, the stitches from the Cesarean are mostly healed and do not hurt too much anymore. Ergo, I can finally move around on my own, for the most part,” she returned flatly, clutching her glass so hard, her knuckles turned white. “Katharina stayed here with me for a month afterward, before she had to leave and get back to her work and duties. It was the same thing with Miles. I do not fault him – he had to leave. He was with me for the whole two months after I lost Carol, and as they say, the show must go on, right? The world does not stop turning simply because your heart is broken.”
Ain’t that the truth? Maya blinked back tears of sympathy. Oh my dear friend, how I long to convey that, almost better than anybody could, I know just how true that is! I don’t even know which one of us has it rougher, though what does it matter, in the end? A loss is a loss, and we are both grieving for those no longer in our lives, because one way or another, they were cruelly taken from us.
“Oh, Franziska,” she whispered, the catch evident in her voice as she set down her drained glass on the table beside the armchair and rose to her feet. In two steps, she closed the distance between them and stood right before the other woman, who had been standing in front of the liquor cabinet this entire time while she poured out her tale of woe. “Dear girl, I am so, so sorry for your loss.”
It was the tremor of barely suppressed tears of empathy, not mere sympathy, which at last made the German woman look up from her drink and study the brunette properly for the first time since she had arrived at her doorstep over two hours ago.
Franziska had known Maya for nearly a decade now since they were both teenagers. The two of them were the same age, though the spirit medium had been a later bloomer than the one-time prosecutor had been, and she hadn’t set eyes on the diviner in person since her 21st birthday party when she had acknowledged that nature had blossomed the spirit medium into quite the beauty. Seeing her up close now, after so long, only reinforced that truth.
The Kurain Master was of pastel white complexion, with silky obsidian locks that always seemed to gleam when they captured the light just right. Moreover, at that precise moment, the quondam DA realized that Maya Fey also had the kindest pair of coffee brown orbs, trimmed by the longest, most gorgeous lashes that she’d ever seen in her whole life. Lovely eyes, yet somehow gentle, that always held warmth within them, and were now also shining with sympathy.
While Franziska had heard every single possible condolence since her daughter’s passing, in English and German, there was something that she saw on that compassionate visage that moment that made her feel, for the first time in a very long time, that somebody other than Miles not only felt her agony but shared it too. Despite the newfound pain, which always resurfaced whenever she thought of or spoke of Carol, there was something she saw in Maya’s orbs that made it impossible for her to retreat into her own private world of selfish grief at the moment. Something that made her want to not only accept comfort but inexplicably give it as well.
Unfortunately, years of suppressing her emotions made her completely unaware of how to go about doing so.
The Master’s heart ached so badly for the other woman she thought it would surely break. To see such a formerly strong, formidable woman like Franziska Von Karma now reduced to an empty shell of what she’d once been, was gut-wrenching. What would it take to mend a soul as damaged as that? And who would even attempt to?
The answer: she would, or die trying.
“Oh, Franziska.” The spirit medium tugged at her friend’s sleeve, and without another word, gently pulled the rigid, albeit unresisting woman’s form against hers. “Come here.”
The German stiffened reflexively. She was so unused to physical contact with anybody but Miles that the first touch of another human being after so long, while not unwelcome, was still jolting.
“Maya Fey, you foolish fool!” She bristled, arms remaining locked by her side, even though her voice was trembling. “What do you think you’re doing?”
Undaunted, the necromancer only held on tighter. While the recipient didn’t return the embrace, she didn’t turn away either, and a muffled sob was heard coming from the Frau in her arms, even as she remained stubbornly unyielding.
Goddammit, woman! Stop being a Von Karma right now and just let me love you!
The mourning woman had received hugs since the death of her daughter, but this one was different. It was warm and comforting, and the American hugged her with respect and tenderness. In that embrace, the mother felt some of her pain and worry lift, and her optimism began to return. Perhaps the hope had been there all along, although without some love, it had been trapped, like crystals in a stone. She struggled to release the pent-up emotions out of the darkness she’d been in for so long, but even that was difficult.
Nevertheless, in Maya Fey’s arms, Franziska experienced the purest, unconditional, honest form of love she had ever felt from someone who was neither her fiancé nor a relative. The world-weariness, that stifling feeling of Weltschmerz, left her completely, and she finally raised her arms to return the embrace, dropping her head onto her friend’s shoulder, left bare by her mint-colored sundress, and let her silent tears fall.
She’d needed this so much. Hadn’t even realized just how much, until that very moment.
Compassion is often seen as a form of love, but it can also be a powerful force in its own right, especially when someone is feeling deeply broken and unable to express their sadness. Compassion can provide a sense of comfort and coziness, helping to ease the pain and bring some sense of peace. The feeling of being embraced by someone who cares can be incredibly soothing, even in the darkest of times. Until I stood in this woman’s arms just now, never before had I ever experienced such a sense of Gemütlichkeit, of complete, satiating coziness and comfort.
The two remained in each other’s arms for several moments, just reveling in the solace they had been seeking for so long until Franziska finally realized that the spirit medium’s shoulder wasn’t the only one that was soaked. The right shoulder of her own sweater was positively drenched.
“Danke, Maya,” she whispered. “I didn’t realize until right now, just how much I needed that.” She drew back slightly then and studied her friend’s damp eyes with concern. “Hold on! Why are you crying?”
The petite village leader sniffled and wiped her eyes. She felt so ashamed of herself, shedding tears over the loss of some blasted man when her friend had experienced the worst kind of loss possible – that of her own child.
“I just – I’ve missed you. A lot,” she mumbled and looked away in embarrassment. “Plus, my heart breaks for you and for all you’ve been through.”
Franziska viewed her steadily, her truth-seeking prosecutor’s eyes seeing right through the other woman’s façade of attempted composure.
In my life, if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that you’ll never meet a strong person with an easy past.
“Your heart breaks,” she prompted quietly. “Even more than it already has been?”
Maya gazed at her with a forlorn expression, feeling extremely exposed and vulnerable.
“Franziska … please don’t underestimate how dear you are to me,” she pleaded. “We weren’t even friends that night of my 21st birthday, yet I’ve never forgotten the kindness you bestowed upon me. While my tears are partially for my personal loss, I know it doesn’t even compare to yours! I beg you not to think less of me for my weakness when you are the one with a greater cause of grief. I am so torn right now, even saying this, yet I am unable to lie to you and say that I am a stranger to heartache as of late.”
“I sensed as much.” The hostess used a tone that was far gentler than any of her guests had ever heard her use before. “And I want you to feel free to confide in me if you feel comfortable enough to do so.”
I cannot even explain how I knew of her sorrow… I just felt it. I just knew that she’s been feeling exactly what I have been experiencing – that overwhelming sense of Mutterseelenallein – the mother of all loneliness. That horrid feeling that no soul is with you, and that you’re so alone that not even your mother’s soul can be by your side. I don’t know if being in this dark place these past few months, with nothing except my own thoughts and emotions as my company, is what’s made me more sensitive in general, because I’ve never been in tune with, or cared too much, about other people. With Maya, for some reason…though, it’s different. Perhaps I just have a particular connection with her that cannot be defined. It’s one I don’t think I’ve ever had with any other woman, except perhaps my sister, ever.
At that exact moment, Helga appeared in the doorway, and the diviner hurriedly closed her mouth.
The old housemaid greeted the new guest with a welcoming smile while carrying a silver tray laden with a delectable selection of bread, a variety of fresh cheeses, smoked salmon, thinly sliced meats, and cold cuts.
“Entschuldigung, gnädige Frau, Aufschnitte für die Damen.” Helga set the tray down on the desk and regarded her mistress sternly, waving away the protest she was about to make. “Du musst essen. Sie sind zu dünn! Ihr Freund zu!”
Franziska barely stifled a frustrated sigh at the housekeeper’s well-intentioned, yet ill-timed interruption.
“Resistance is futile; my cook is going to insist that we eat something, you know,” she translated to the American with a wry smile. “She says I look too thin, and so do you.”
“Well, she doesn’t need to twist my arm.” May’s mouth was beginning to water at the scrummy smorgasbord that had been presented, and her misery temporarily abated in place of her ever-present appetite. Also, the unaccustomed amount of strong spirits in her now empty stomach was burning a hole within her gut. “That looks lecker.”
The silver-haired Dame felt her lips twitch into a knowing smile. Trust the gluttonous diviner, out of all the German words, to have picked up on the adjective to describe tasty food!
Nonetheless, that was what made Maya… Maya. As she watched her visitor tuck into the fare with her customary gusto, as though she hadn’t eaten in a month, the former prosecutor found herself helplessly endeared that even as a grown-up, who was now a single mom, her guileless old friend still exhibited many of the candid traits of her youth.
She is an adult who has a childlike innocence and simplicity and is both genuine and authentic, with a refreshing openness. When she smiles and laughs, it’s contagious and brings joy to those around her. Being in her presence feels uplifting and warm, like being basked in summer sunshine, no matter the time of year.
At least, that had been the Kurain head whom she had always known, right up until then.
Staring into the other woman’s eyes now was like gazing into a mirror of her own soul, and feeling completely lost in the kaleidoscope of raw emotions she saw there.
Internal pain and struggle. Jumbled and disordered thoughts. Things loved most that had been thrown aside, trashed from the mind. Memories covered and caked with darkness and torment.
Sorrow is the new smile within her eyes. Tears replace the sunshine. And life is dark, for what seems to be forever. I must find some way to let her know it doesn’t need to be so. This woman offered me comfort while asking for nothing in return. A small piece of me now feels somewhat healed because of her, even though her insides remain broken. How can I help her? I’m not very good at matters of the heart. If I were, my Miles would still be with me…
Franziska steeled herself and her mind from spiraling yet again onto that one-way, self-pitying track into the black abyss and placed her fingertips on Maya’s hand, which was brushing off a few stray crumbs onto her plate. Not a speck of food remained on the tray.
“Do you think your appetite is satisfied for now, or shall I have Helga get us something else?” She smirked, gesturing to the empty tray. “I just wanted to ensure that everything was to your liking.”
“What, no Döner Kebab? That’s what’s made this whole visit to Germany worthwhile!” The satiated guest quipped, blushing slightly as she patted her mouth daintily with her napkin. “I jest, of course, though I admit, I may be overcompensating with your country’s zum Anbeißen food since coming here to Germany.”
A silver brow arched questioningly at this disclosure.
“Before coming here, I think I may have lost a few pounds from light eating during my time in the first two European two countries,” she admitted. “If your maid thought I appeared thin, it’s possibly because aside from the Professor’s scrumptious lamb dinner the first night in London, I was subjected to some authentic fare which just did not sit right with my palate! I pretty much just lived off cheese and champagne in France, and off toast and tea and chips, as they call them over there, in England!”
“Oh, you foolish Americans!” The lady of the house admonished laughingly. “Must you be so xenophobic? I see your newfound sophistication is limited strictly to your hairstyle, Maya Fey! Do you plan on living the rest of your life existing entirely on burgers and French fries, regardless of where you go?”
Maya sighed as she followed her hostess out of the study, down the hall, and up the stairs to one of the guest bedrooms, which she’d been told was right next to Franziska’s. One of the servants had already thoughtfully put her bags by the bed, which the Kurain Master now flopped onto, pulling her knees to her chin as she patted the spot beside her.
“I remember I once gave a lecture to Nick, to stop sticking with the same old food habits and not be afraid to embrace new things,” the raven-haired beauty murmured, idly twirling a lock of hair around her finger. “In this case, it was because he was reluctant to try this amazing gourmet chicken with a fruity sauce that Hendricks had labored over at the penthouse. I hated the idea of either of us appearing ungrateful, so I threatened to rat him out to Miles if he didn’t comply and eat his damn bird like a good boy!”
There it was again, Franziska noted as she took a seat on the bed. While the story was supposed to be funny, and it was, the sadness in those dark eyes didn’t match the humor of the tale whatsoever, and only made her more concerned about her friend’s state of being.
“Maya.” Somehow, the Interpol Agent instinctively already knew the answer to the question she was about to pose. “What happened with Phoenix?”
Maya’s eyes normally resembled the sweetest of chocolate, the kind that melted at the slightest bit of the heat from love, or happiness. Regardless, that confectionary could also grow chilled from heartbreak or the cold harsh reality that was apparent in the world. Or, in this case, it was from the depression that she hid from all those around her so well, right up until that moment, when the German saw unmistakable tears once again glistening in those tell-tale orbs.
That was when she immediately knew. Deep down, from the moment she’d first observed those expressive dark eyes, she’d already known.
“I am very sorry, my friend.” Franziska shook her head sadly. “Phoenix Wright is a foolish fool of a man to think he can do any better than you.”
The spirit medium peered into the kindhearted gray gaze, which showed the kind of gentle concern her beloved sister used to have, and as she laid her fingers lightly on Maya’s shoulder, instead of flinching at the unexpected gesture, she was soothed by it, as it felt as though she were wrapped up in a blanket of her caring. Franziska left her hand there and spoke with such a soft voice that the necromancer felt her friend’s words calming her more by the way they were said, than the actual words themselves, which were colorful variations – in English and German! – of calling Phoenix Wright “die Mutter of all fool-hearted fools!”
A single droplet slid from those warm, mocha eyes, followed by another one, and another one, until soon, a steady stream of salty tears flowed its way down her pale cheek, releasing the wretchedness and sorrow that had been held inside of her for all this time, even though she still did not make a sound.
Wordlessly, the erstwhile Wild Mare reached over, held the petite spirit medium in her arms, and let her bawl her heart out.
“I feel like such a pitiful idiot!” Maya wept. “To be crying in front of you, after everything that you’ve gone through…”
“Stop talking like a fool.” Franziska gently rubbed her friend’s back. “When words fail me, and right now, I will be honest, they do, I find a good cry can be equally as comforting. With me, always know that you have the freedom to do that.”
And so, placated by those words, the poor psychic let out a heart-wrenching wail, followed by a series of blatant sobs that wracked her body, even though she still hated herself for the proverbial actions of preaching to the choir and forcing comfort from someone who had already lost so much.
However, attempting to halt the flowing rivulets cascading down her cheeks would have been like trying to hold back a tidal wave. She just couldn’t stop.
I cry to understand myself better. When I cry, I know who I really am. I cry when I’m hurting and when others are hurting. I’ve cried at samurai shows for kids, at brutal news, and sappy movies. Crying is both my strength and my weakness. It’s my strength. It helps me understand my emotions and my weakness because sometimes people don’t want to hear someone crying when they’re looking for a strong shoulder. I wish I could turn my tears off or save them for when I’m alone, but I’m not wired that way. My emotions are deep and strong like ocean currents. Sometimes I’m scared to dive in because I’m afraid I won’t make it back out. But I can’t be anyone else. I don’t think any of us can.
For the longest time, Maya bawled in the former prosecutor’s arms, until at last, her tears ran dry, and then she was finally quiet.
“Do you feel any better now?” Franziska discreetly plucked a tissue from the night table and gently pressed it against the American’s knuckles.
The village leader nodded silently and mopped at her damp face with the proffered paper handkerchief.
“It’s been two months,” she uttered morosely, staring into the sympathetic argent gaze. “And it still hurts as much as it did the day he left me. I’ve tried to be strong, because my little girl loved him so much, and I can’t be breaking down in front of her… I can’t even badmouth him, not only because it would be like badmouthing her father, but also because I still love him! I was trying to play it cool and not let Longines know just what a wreck I still am about it all, but saying those atrocities in front of him about Nick …it damn near killed me, as pathetic as that sounds!”
“It is not pathetic.” Franziska patted her hand. “You cannot control who you love.”
“How can I still ache for a man who tossed me aside like yesterday’s trash?” Maya lamented. “Am I some kind of masochist? A complete doormat, with no self-esteem, because I know I would take him back in a New York minute if he just gives me the word, even though I would hate myself at the same time since doing so would mean sacrificing all of my self-respect?”
“None of the above,” the Frau assured her. “I do understand exactly how you feel. We even have a term in German to paraphrase what it is that you’re feeling. It’s called Sehnsucht.”
“Come again?” The dark-haired woman peered at her blankly, what such an animated expression of confusion it was almost comical.
“Sehnsucht. This is another word that describes a complex set of emotions,” the European explained. “It comes from sehnen, which means to yearn or long for, and sucht, an obsession, craving, or addiction. It would mean something like an obsessive yearning for something, but that doesn’t quite capture it. It could be used to describe an inconsolable hankering for happiness and the unattainable. It could illustrate that you’re intensely missing something or someone…”
The Kurain head blew her nose.
“…Even if they are the most foolish fool of a man to have ever graced Gott’s green earth!” The German added darkly.
The Burger Queen had to crack a smile at that one.
“My friend, I will profess that I am not always very good with my verse,” Franziska admitted. “Perhaps that is why I have always resorted to my whip to demonstrate the words I cannot properly convey! However, I want you to try an exercise with me. Pretend that I am Phoenix Wright, standing in front of you right now. What would you now express to him, which thus far, you have been unable to?”
Maya thought about that for a moment and searched her mind for the right words to convey the tumultuous mix of anger, pain, and despair she had been experiencing for the last two months, and then turned her newfound furious, accusing gaze onto Franziska, speaking to her as though she was her ex-boyfriend.
“Phoenix Wright, every moment we shared together has become a painful memory that cuts through me whenever I think about our time together! Even the good times we had are now like a stabbing knife making its killing wound unto my already broken heart. You not only pierced my soul; you made me skeptical and cynical about people and love!”
Maya jumped off the bed and pointed her finger at Franziska, courtroom-style, her body trembling with the force of her rage.
“For that, I hate you! Do you hear me? I fucking hate you! You turned me into this broken mess and even if I never see you again, your influence will stay with me for years, maybe even for the rest of my life. You destroyed my confidence and I remember every single hurtful word you said that night. I remember how you made me feel worthless. Now, the voice in my head that tells me I’ll never have a love like that again, it’s not even my own anymore. It’s your voice, telling me all over again how you don’t love me, that you only care for me, and that you’re leaving me for Iris!”
“Iris? Iris Hawthorne?!” Franziska stared at her incredulously. “As in, the twin sister of that crazy Miststück, Dahlia Hawthorne? Your mystery cousin, whom you did not even know you had, until that horrible Hazakura temple case? That Iris?”
“Yes indeed, that would be the home-wrecking hussy.” Although Maya laughed, it was completely devoid of mirth, sounding cold and harsh to both their ears. “The one and only!”
“I thought she was a nun?!” The gray peepers were round with shock.
“I guess she’s breaking her celibacy vows,” the recently dumped replied bitterly.
“I thought she was in prison for her misdeeds during that whole incident involving your mother?”
“Guess which jailbird has now flown the coop?”
“I cannot believe this!” Franziska jumped off the bed and placed her hands on her hips, completely outraged on her behalf. “That – that Scheißkerl left you for that … weak-willed, brainless … dishrag ex-girlfriend of his?!”
Maya nodded silently, and her friend’s voice rose with indignation.
“Saukerl!” Franziska spat. “Dämlich Arschloch is most fortunate he cannot taste the leather of my whip from here! Iris is as bland as rice cake and all Phoenix Wright got out of their relationship was a stomach full of glass and metal!”
“I know.”
“The woman is completely spineless, mindless, and good for nothing whatsoever unless you are trying to persuade her to commit a felony on your behalf!” The fiery femme was positively fuming now. “How could that man leave you, vivacious, funny, kind, and loyal … For the human equivalent of a paper clip?!”
Maya choked back a horrified laugh, this time a genuine one, despite her misery.
“Hold it! I would like to strike that previous testimony from the record! A paper clip would imply she’s useful for something!” Franziska was only getting warmed up now. “What is wrong with that blasted, foolish man? Did she drug him somehow? Cast some sort of voodoo love spell? I refuse to believe that any man in his right mind could forsake you, the prestigious Kurain Master, an unequivocal world-class beauty, for that weeping willow of a woman, suffering from the worst case I have ever seen of Backpfeifengesicht
syndrome!”“What the hell does that mean?” A helpless snort of laughter escaped Maya then. Lady Von Whippingberg was just too much!
“Backpfeifengesicht is a term that translates into a face in need of a slap! In the shrine maiden’s case, she has a face that should get a slap that whistles across the cheek – and then some!”
“Franziska, I beg of you, please stop!” The Master fell back on the bed then, laughing so hard she could hardly breathe. “You’re gonna kill me!”
“Humph! Fine, we can try to be adults about this,” the hostess grumbled. “They say never feel bad if you see your ex with somebody else because it is the ultimate act of charity to give your used goods to the less fortunate…”
“Stop!” Maya howled, clutching her stomach.
“Oh come on, I find I’m rather enjoying this!” The silver eyes were dancing with laughter. “You try it now! It is honestly quite fun!”
“OK fine! If you insist!” Maya ventured, erupting into a fresh set of giggles. “I … I hope Nick suffers from incurable erectile dysfunction, stemming from the blandest, most boring, permanent missionary sex ever, with Iris!”
“You are still being too kind! I wish for him to reenact that scene from There’s Something About Mary and yank his zipper up too fast and at the wrong time!”
“I hope to bear his spiky-headed demon offspring leaves Iris with a flapping hoo-ha as loose as a caboose and his man-thing feels like the equivalent of a hot dog in a hallway!”
“Now that is the spirit!” Franziska joined in the merriment. “I hope whenever he tries to kiss her, he is permanently haunted by mental images of Larry instead! Or better still, images of Mr. Butz’s … large, hairy Arsch!”
Unable to go on a moment longer, the ladies fell back onto the bed, laughing so hard that tears streamed out of their eyes.
“You’re the best, Franziska.” The spirit medium finally sat up and beamed at her friend. “I desperately needed that, you have no idea how much!”
“It will get better,” the other woman promised, her expression turning serious. “Maya, I know from experience. When you suffer a great loss, it feels like your world is consumed by darkness. It’s like being hit by an emotional Mack truck. The loved one is gone, but you’re still here, and you can’t understand how that’s possible. The loss affects every part of you. You can’t think straight and you’re just going through the motions. It’s like walking in a daze. There’s a mental tornado inside your head that no one can see or understand. You might shut down for weeks or even months.”
“Check, check, affirmative, and check!” The spirit medium nodded vigorously. “That’s exactly how I’ve been feeling all this time! I trusted Nick completely. I was lost in his lies. The only thing I got in the end, after six years of hoping, wishing, and waiting, was a cold, callous betrayal. It’s slowly been seeping in how much of a fool I had been, living in my own dream world. I’ve floated away from the fake promises and reality until… I was just a lost star.”
She took a deep, shaky breath.
“So how do I know when, or if, it will ever get better?”
“Because time heals all wounds, my friend. You must trust me on this one.” The Agent met her gaze levelly. “Eventually, the loss will become part of your new reality. You will realize that you are not the only one who has suffered this way and that you will someday experience loss again. At that point, the memories of the person you lost will become bittersweet. You will be able to remember the good times and move on with your life. You’ll find that this horrible experience has not broken you, but has made you stronger.”
“You sound like Yoda.” Maya smiled sadly. “I know there is a lot of wise intelligence behind those words… You don’t become a prodigy prosecutor at age 13 by being a completely foolish fool.”
She playfully stuck out her tongue.
“However, in the meantime, until this wondrous day comes, what am I supposed to do?”
“You can stop beating yourself up for the way you feel and accept the fact that it’s OK to still love him. You were together for six years, and have only been apart for a couple of months.” Franziska leaned over and patted her hand. “Phoenix Wright was not only your lover, but he was also your best friend, and essentially, your daughter’s father. Do not be angry with yourself for being human. Wir alle sehnen uns nach Streicheleinheiten.”
“Um, translation please?”
“It means we are all in want of love and affection, which I know, in my heart of hearts, someday you will most definitely find. For now, take this time, Maya, and get to know what you are all about. For almost 10 years, the only world you have ever known revolved around Phoenix Wright. Now you are the prestigious leader of the village and an adult. The time has come for you to discover who Maya Fey really is, as I already know who she is.”
“While that makes one of us,” the Master returned dryly. “Who am I then? You tell me because I have no earthly idea.”
“You are Maya Fey.” Franziska smiled encouragingly. “A grown woman who can no longer be made a victim in life. She alone is in charge of her own fate, her own destiny.”
Maya mulled all of this over, and slowly, but surely, for the first time in forever, she felt somewhat at peace within her heart as the weight this bestowed wisdom sunk in.
“What about you, then?” She inquired. “You told me that Miles is going to be gone for six months to a year. In the meantime, what do you want to do with your life now?”
Franziska heaved a great sigh and dropped her eyes down toward her lap. She was immensely happy to have cheered her friend up somewhat, and have given her genuine heartfelt, and useful advice, on top of a few good laughs. Nevertheless, when the tables were turned, at that moment she suddenly felt like the shoemaker with no shoes. For the life of her, she could not muster a fitting answer to Maya’s question.
“I do not know.” She replied honestly, clenching her hands into fists and then unclenching them again over and over again. “I truly really do not know at all.”
“Don’t give me that! Franziska, you’re a Von Karma, dammit!” Maya put her hand on Franziska’s shoulder and shook her gently, forcing the other woman to meet her eyes. “How do you not know what you want to do? You Von Karmas not only always know what they want to do, but they also move heaven and earth to make sure that they go out and do it, and do it better than anybody else! Should that not work, they’re resourceful enough to have six or seven different but equally perfect plans to achieve said perfect goal!”
“I no longer strive for perfection, Maya.” She laughed ruefully and shook her head. “Many years ago, I ceased attempting to be a cloned version of my perfectionist, victory-seeking father, because I came to the humbling realization that I was neither perfect nor a genius. That knowledge freed me from the obsessive desire to be anything like him, or what he thought our family name and creed stood for.”
“The Von Karma creed, to be perfect in every way,” the diviner recalled. “This is something that is no longer of relevance to you then?”
“Not in the least.” Franziska shook her head vehemently. “I do not like the person I was back then, when a perfect victory record was my sole raison d’être, back before I realized that the prosecution path wasn’t about winning but uncovering the truth. I was not alone in my self-loathing. To this day, I still remember the stinging words little Pearl said to me six years ago. ‘I don’t like you. You’re nothing more than a little girl without your whip’ ”
“Pearly was only a little girl at the time and didn’t know what she was saying. Please don’t take that to heart. She didn’t mean it.”
“Whether she meant it or not, she was right though.” Franziska crossed her arms and tightly clutched her sleeves. “I –I no longer wish to be seen as naught more than a cruel, heartless woman who abuses others with her whip in her determined quest for perfection.”
“By admitting to your previous flaws, and knowing what you no longer want to be, you have already taken giant leaps towards discovering who you do want to be and what you want to do,” Maya said softly. “You do realize that, don’t you?”
“By eliminating the impossible, we find the possible. Is that where you’re going with this?”
“It’s about where you’re going with this, Franziska.” Maya’s expression was earnest. “Listen to me now. You and I are a lot alike. We both were born into legacies that maybe we didn’t necessarily want, but the die was cast. Nevertheless, what we need to understand is that we are still the masters of our own fates.”
“You make it sound so simple.” The Agent blinked back tears. “I wish it were as such, and that I could see life in the same positive light that you do. Things would be so much simpler if only I could see myself through those ever-optimistic eyes of yours, Maya Fey.”
“Franziska Von Karma, I didn’t see any light at the end of the tunnel, and had a dark cloud of gloom over my head, right up until I came to see you today.” The necromancer looked her steadily in the eye. “You have renewed my hope in everything.”
“Hope?”
“Yes, hope. That’s what keeps you alive, gives you strength, and helps you to fight through every day. What do you hope for? A better tomorrow? What would you do if you realized that you’ll never get that? Would you just give up?”
Sometimes I wish I could give up, but something inside me keeps me going – my dreams, my hopes. They help me get up every day, she realized. Maybe that’s what hope is – a distant star shining in the darkest sky. It’s not enough to banish the darkness, but it gives me the belief that there are thousands more stars out there, and all I have to do is find them. So I keep fighting, ignoring the darkness that tries to hold me back.
“No.” Franziska finally spoke and squared her jaw as a steely glint of determination flickered in her eyes. “Whatever happens next, I know I can’t allow myself to be beaten, because that would mean bowing to what fate says would be my lot in life and accepting a path exactly like my father’s. I know ultimately, I am the master of my destiny. I’ve already learned that there is help in the world for a hard worker with the right attitude.”
“Thatta girl!” Maya cheered, beaming excitedly. “Whatever your talent is, you need to go out there and change the world, make this a better place to be in. However, for different reasons than your father, who tried to change the world for selfish reasons; fame, glory, power. You are brave, pure of heart, and strong of spirit. We both may have inherited great responsibilities, but we also both have the power to control our own destinies and turn them into something great. But you can’t achieve any of that sitting here cooped up, and wallowing away in this mansion.”
“You have made your point, Maya Fey.” Franziska leaned over and pulled the spirit medium into a warm, crushing embrace for a moment, then rose from the bed and threw back her shoulders. “I’m going to go make a phone call to a certain Wolf Man now. He needs to know that I am finally ready to come back to work… But on meine terms, not his!”
She flashed her trademark confident grin.
“After all, I am a Von Karma!”
“A Von Karma born with the exact talents this universe needs to become further enriched because you’re in it.” Maya flashed her a thumbs-up sign. “Use those strengths for justice, peace, and a healing world, and know that I will always be here, believing in you, rooting for you, no matter what.”
Franziska’s eyes glowed with warmth and affection as she regarded her friend, then gave her one last smile before she nodded her head and strode out of the room, once again resuming the assertive, self-assured gait Maya had always associated with the formidable German Dame.
Sitting there, alone in that room, the Kurain Master reflected on everything they had discussed, and what revelations had come to light.
Even though dawn is still some time away, I feel a light in my heart that was missing just yesterday. It’s a spark of hope, a ray of sunshine yet to be born, but it’s there and I can feel it. Maybe that’s optimism – the anticipation of good things to come. It’s a feeling I haven’t had in so long that it feels both strange and welcome. In order to embrace the brightness of my future, I need to let go of the shadows of my past. It’s time for me to move forward and never look back, except to see how far I’ve come. Moreover, while I will never understand why Nick did what he did to me, it doesn’t matter anymore. Phoenix Wright, wherever you are, I wish you well, as well as a farewell. It’s time for the next chapter of my life to begin, even if it is without you. I have at last come to accept the fact that sometimes, even the greatest love has to end, so your true destiny can finally begin.
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