A/n: Alaka- I'm back! Guys, every one of you who said 'Alaka-anything' made me laugh. So crafty! Thanks so much for that. And, of course, thank you for the lovely comments. Here's that second half I said would be up. Hope you enjoy.

That last chapter was angsty, this one is a little happier- for Valant, at least.

Disclaimer: I still don't own the rights to Ace Attorney. If I did, we'd definitely have more back story on the Gramarye's.

Chapter 2: Impossible Shadow

xxxx

The steady drone of an alarm clock bounced off of stark white walls. A groan soon followed the sound and sluggish hand fumbled to hush the familiar tune. Slapping down the snooze button, Valant allowed his arm to dangle over the side of the bed as his eyes adjusted to the morning light peeking between his curtains.

Had the alarm clock buzzed a few months back, he would have allowed it to screech on and just ignored it.

After his grand trick at the Gavinners concert had been performed, he'd had little reason to get out of bed; his career had gone right back on stand-by. It had been no different from the last seven years. He had trudged on in hopes of finally gaining his magic once more, but had again been denied the gold medal and left to stand on the side-lines. Just as he had been denied the gold seven years ago. Nothing had changed. He would have wallowed in self-pity and probably never left his tiny apartment again had Phoenix Wright not showed up in his life once again.

Wright had been apart of his life once before, seven years ago after the death of Magnifi. He had, in a sense, contributed to down-fall of Valant, trying to pin the death of the great magician on the young apprentice. Though Valant hadn't ended the old man's life, he had been guilty of being led by darkness and tampering with the crime scene in hopes of pining the deed on his partner. His goal hadn't been accomplished, Zak had pulled the greatest illusion ever and fled the court house. Magnifi ended his life with his own hand. Both men of the Troupe were gone, and Valant had been the only one left standing, alone and accused of murder, with no magic and a lone goal: obtain Magnifi's magic.

He had forged on, performing shows here and there, biding his time and waiting for his chance to inherit the Gramarye magic. His time had come soon after his Gavinner show. He had pinned and sought after that day since the Troupe's fall. When it had finally arrived, he had been giddy as a school boy. He had prepared one of the most extravagant shows in the history of magic- his return would not be a quiet one.

Or so had been his intentions. Turned out, his return was not to be at all. Phoenix Wright had once again popped into his life, delivering him a letter containing the the rights to Magnifi's magic. Only the bearer was Zak's daughter Trucy, and not Valant Gramarye. That news had been his undoing. The one thing he had been waiting for was not to be his. And the guilt over tampering with his mentor's crime scene and intention to blame his partner had been weighing heavily on him for years; with no magic to be had and a burden to be lifted, Valant had turned himself in to the authorities after his meeting with Phoenix.

He had thought it would be his end, but it had turned out to be his beginning. His confession had landed him in jail and though the act had been committed seven years ago, it was a crime nonetheless. He supposed he would still be sitting in that jail cell that was, somehow, even smaller than his apartment if he hadn't been visited by Trucy Wright and Apollo Justice. Justice had managed to get him out of the cell and on community service. He would probably be serving the community for rest of his days, but he had to admit that being outside was much better than sitting in a dingy little cell, even if the world held little for him.

Trucy had had different intentions. She didn't think her 'uncle' Valant should just toil his days away and live to pay back his debt to society. She thought that he should share his love of magic with the world. She thought that he should join her.

Even now, months after the fact, Valant could scarcely believe that Trucy had wished for him to join her. He had known the girl since she was born, and had always felt love for the child, but after her mother had died and the Troupe had begun to unravel, he had been guilty of neglecting her. After Zak had disappeared and he had been detained on suspicion of murder, he had barely had time to spare the young child a second thought. When he had learned that Phoenix Wright had taken her in, he had felt relief. How could he have cared for a child when his career was no more and he had to constantly pick himself off of the floor?

But Trucy didn't seem to hold the past above his head as her grandfather had. She had come to him, the same bouncy, energized little Trucy he remembered, asking him is he would like to perform with her. She had wanted her uncle Valant to step on stage with her and once again wow crowds with the magic of Troupe Gramarye. She was not bitter. She wasn't scorned. She was a fifteen-year-old girl seeking to help someone that had once been a large part of her life.

Phoenix had done an excellent job of raising a mature and compassionate daughter, and Valant hadn't been able to refuse her earnest request.

Dragging a hand across his face, Valant didn't have much trouble pulling himself out of bed and walking into the adjoining bathroom. He didn't have a show to perform today, but he did have a practice meet with Miss Trucy. In a way, he enjoyed the practices more than the actual performances. He found that being with Trucy was so much like his days in the Troupe, when he and Zak could laugh together and Thalassa could smile with them.

His days were suddenly bright and full, and he wasn't concerned with shadows at all.

xxxx

People lined the sidewalk, some briskly walking towards their destination, others taking their time and chatting amiably. Groups pushed through one way, others turned and walked in the opposite direction. The stores that sat along the sidewalks were alive with activity as people flooded the shops, the warm sun and bright sky leading people out of their homes and into the city. And while most were there to shop, one was there to merely watch.

Thalassa Gramarye sat on a bench near one of the buildings, legs crossed at the ankle as she observed the many people walk up and down the sidewalk. Strange as it may seem to watch strangers pass her by, Thalassa enjoyed the activity, a happy smile spread across lips. Had she been sitting on this bench a few months ago, these people with unfamiliar faces would have had no faces at all, and she would still have no memory of her true self.

For the past seven years she had been living as Lamiroir, seeing only darkness and memories a fog as thick as the night she saw. Her world had been nothing but a blank void, though her singing voice had propelled her into a bright spotlight she could not see. She had lived in a constant blur, unable to remember something as simple as her name but able to memorize countless ballads. Her life had been full of adventures, but her heart had been as empty as her mind,

Now she sat along the storefronts, her eyes open to the world as her memories slowly crept towards the light of day, All because one man sought her out and helped her reclaim that which she had lost. Phoenix Wright had come to her, offering her the key to her own being. And because of him, she could see the people that walked by her, not just listen to their varying footsteps. She could remember that her name was Thalassa Gramarye, and that she was a mother to two children that had no idea who she was.

Though some of the memories that came back to her were over-whelming, she was thankful for the emotions they brought. At least she could remember. She no longer had to live in darkness and confusion; she could see her life as it had been before becoming Lamiroir.

And what a life she had been given.

She had been born to a man who was a genius in the field of magic. Magnifi Gramarye could perform feats that left your mind reeling with the complexity and wonder it involved. Her father had been a great man. She had followed in his footsteps, wanting to be like him in every way. He could be demanding at times, strict and harsh, but she had always known that he loved her. Sometimes they would practice so long into the night that she would have dreams of the trick, sometimes she had wanted to through down her staff and walk away from the demands he would ask, but she had never doubted his love.

When he had decided to bring two apprentices into their troupe, she had been a little put-off by the idea. She hadn't been able to understand why her father needed more magicians, why she alone wasn't good enough. But when Zak and Valant had appeared, she'd wondered why she had even been opposed to the idea. Zak, with his charming smile and bigger-than-life attitude had immediately won a place in the spotlight and Valant, with his firm confidence and intricate mannerisms had been right behind him. Both men had easily won a place in her heart. Their troupe had soared to new heights.

Looking back, she realized how wonderful those days had been.

But at eighteen, you could rarely see what you had in front of you. And though she had loved Troupe Gramarye dearly, she had wanted to spread her own wings. She had thought she would do that by herself, without anyone else. But somehow she had wound up with another group of magician- not nearly as popular as her own but full of heart- and in the arms of a young man with a heart as large as his troupe's. She had married the man, much to chagrin of her father, and had her first child soon after. It had all happened so quickly, but she had been happy and her life had been so full.

Her happiness had been short lived. Her husband had been killed in a stunt gone wrong, barely a year after their baby Apollo had been born. Her life had gone from a joyous ride to a slow-motion horror. Her husband's troupe had disbanded soon after his death and Thalassa had been alone with an infant to care for. She knew she could go back home, back to Troupe Gramarye, but she didn't want to- she didn't want to go crawling back and looking like a failure. Widowed with a child and only nineteen? The media would have a field day, and she couldn't run her father's dream into the dirt.

So she did the only thing she thought she could do- she gave her baby boy up for adoption. She now realized how immature she had been; her father, hard as he could have been, wouldn't have condemned her. Zak and Valant certainly wouldn't have looked down on her. Troupe Gramarye had been her family, they wouldn't have sent her away or mocked her. She hadn't been able to see that truth at the time, however, and had given up the sweetest thing life had given her.

She had then returned to her troupe, and things had eventually gone back to the way they had been. Her father had still expected perfection, Zak had still been the imposing figure on stage, and Valant had still possessed his confident flare. She had filed right back between the two men and it had been like she had never left. In the public eye, at least. On the inside she had been a mess, full of tears and regret, longing for something she could no longer hold. She had been in such a slump and had had little intention of pulling herself out of it.

Zak and Valant had decided to help her instead. They had, slowly, lifted her out of her hole and set her feet on solid ground. Zak had pushed her on with his wide grin and booming voice, constantly telling her she couldn't give up and had to keep living. Valant had been on her other side, reminding her who she was and what she could be. Her life had eventually brightened once again, and she had been able to smile.

And once again she had found herself in love with a magician, though this time he was much closer to home. Years after her return to the troupe she married Zak and had another child, a daughter named Trucy. With the birth of her second child, Thalassa had finally felt truly at peace, and she had been the happiest she had been since returning home. The next eight years had been filled with unspeakable joys.

Why her life had to once again take a turn for the worse was something she would never be able to understand. Their training practice- one they could do with their eyes closed- had left her with a bullet in her head and her memories ripped away from her. Her life as Thalassa had been forced to end when things had been so wonderful.

For seven years she had lived in darkness, unaware of her past and living day-to-day as Lamiroir. Now she could open her eyes and once again be herself. She could remember so much of her past, of being Thalassa. She could remember so very much.

But she could touch nothing. While she slept, life moved on. Her troupe was no more. Her father was no longer with her. Zak, too, was gone. They had left her, moved on from this life and into the next. Trucy was a fifteen year old girl who thought her mother was dead. Apollo was now twenty-two and he probably spared her little thought.

She was finally able to remember who she was, but Thalassa Gramarye might as well have stayed Lamiroir- her life as Thalassa had ended seven years ago.

Sighing, Thalassa shook her head, flicking away her bleak thoughts and staring up at the summer sky. She could clearly see the vast blue, the puffy clouds floating lazily. Yes, life had moved on around her while she slept in a fog, but now she had a chance to catch up. Her life had been on pause for the past seven years, now she needed to press play.

Standing, she smoothed out her white sundress, reminding that just because she was a little late, being there was better than never showing up at all. Phoenix Wright had given her the key to her life, and now she had to open the door.

Slipping into the crowd, Thalassa easily kept pace. She wasn't entirely sure she was going, she only knew she could no longer sit on that bench and allow herself to dwell on the past. Pulling her purse closer, she thought about heading into one of the many shops and picking up a little something for her children. They didn't know her as their mother, but they did know her as a singer. She was in town for a concert and she knew that Phoenix would have no objections is she dropped by his apartment with some tickets for Apollo and Trucy. Thalassa still wasn't quite sure if it was a coincidence or fate that he had taken in her daughter and hired her son, but she was thankful for it either way.

She was about to step into a building when the sound of steady tap caught her attention. It sounded like nothing more than a cane bumping against the sidewalk, but whoever carried the instrument didn't seem to need it; they're was no limp or delayed sound to the noise. Curious, Thalassa stepped away from the building and sought out the owner in the cane. It only took her a moment to locate the sound, even in the crowded area. Her blindness had left her with excellent hearing. But the sight that greeted her made her wonder if her eyesight was truly restored.

What she thought was a cane wasn't a cane at all but a staff, and the man that held it did not look like he needed walking assistance. Wearing a pair of black jeans and a simple white tee he looked like he was prepared for a day of shopping, but the determined stride in his walk suggested otherwise, his dark hair swaying with each step he took. He wasn't the youngest man in the crowd, but he certainly wasn't the oldest and as she watched him, Thalassa felt her heart jump to life.

Even without the yellow cape and top hat, even though seven years had passed since the last time she had seen him, Thalassa would recognize the swagger of the man anywhere.

Feeling as though her memories had materialized right before her, she pushed her way through the many people along the sidewalk, forgetting her intentions of shopping as she fought to catch up with the man. He was quite a few paces ahead of her and his long strides made it difficult to shorten the gap. Knowing that there was a good chance he would get lost in the mass of people before she could catch him, Thalassa picked up her pace and called out his name.

The drone of the crowd blotted out her voice, and her target continued walking. Unwilling to let him just walk on by her, Thalassa hurried after him, thoughts focused on catching her friend and nothing else. She didn't even stop to think of the fact that just as she hadn't seen him in seven years, he hadn't seen her, either, and that the last time they had been together he had thought she had died. Logical thoughts had fled from her mind, and she could only think of reclaiming a small piece of her shattered past.

Shortening the distance between them, she once again called out his name. This time, however, he heard her. Slowing to a walk, she watched as he stopped and turned around, a curious smirk on his face. She also watched as his familiar grin slipped from his face and his expression turned to absolute shock, his fingers tightening around his staff until his knuckles turned white. Thalassa stopped in front of him and though her heart was pounding in her throat, she offered the confused man a gentle smile.

"Hi, Valant." He only gaped, eyes wide as he visibly swallowed. Thalassa found her smile stretching wider, unable to deny the awkwardness of the moment but feeling oddly pleased despite it. Bringing her hand the brooch at her neck, she added softly, "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

Valant continued to stare, dark eyes narrowing as leaned towards to her. The wonder etched on his face deepened the closer he got. Swallowing hard, he straightened, fingers still curled tightly around his staff. Finally, he managed one simple word.

"Thalassa."

xxxx

A/n: Why did I find it so easy to write Thalassa but not Lamiroir? Hmm. I took more liberties with back story. Thalassa has even less that Valant. Man, I wish I had some more information to go on. We seriously need some more Gramarye love, don't we? The troupe is so under appreciated...

Speaking of more Gramarye love... I am so tempted to turn this thing into a mini-series. Hah! I'm having a lot of fun with it, and there really isn't much on the troupe at all. I'm very open to suggestions. All opinions would be welcome, especially since I'm so torn what to do. And, of course, opinions on this installment would also be very appreciated.

As of now, I'm going to mark this as complete, but we'll see. Thanks so much for reading and partaking in the Valant/Troupe Gramarye love. Until next time?

- L2G