Chapter FOUR! Woohoo! Sorry for taking so long, but I went to the 2010 Cosfest! It was sooo awesome, and I got some really cool photos of Alice, Will of the Abyss, Lavi and Yu Kanda cosplayers. Most of the people were cosplaying Volcaloid, so yeah.

Now, you would think that Break would give poor Cassidy a day to get used to things, right? WRONG. Just because he destroyed the thing-which-he-found-in-another-dimension-and-had-destroyed-to-protect-someone which had something to do with a-certain-someone-and-a-certain-tragedy doesn't mean he's given up! That's right, Cassidy, it's your first mission; go to you-know-who and try to squeeze you-know-what information from him! (Here's a Tip: Stay away from the scissors, especially if you're a stuffed toy).

If you don't know, then this chapter will contain spoilers. (Episode 16 or something close in the anime I think)

I don't own Pandora Hearts, but I do own you-can-guess.

Recite Your Past

'NO! I'm not, I mean never, gonna wear that dress!'

Her blue eyes wide with horror at the frilly pink specimen in Sharon's hands, Cassidy took refuge behind a chair, trying to edge her way to the door. The girl calculated that she still had a chance, considering that Sharon still hadn't introduced her…

Suddenly, the romancing loving Contractor gained a menacing aura. Carefully placing the outfit on the bed, her dainty hands reached behind her back and drew out two paper fans. They were a light shade of blue and a bit larger than average, but the other girl didn't notice this much. She was concentrating on convincing herself that no matter how stiff they looked, they probably felt like paper. They were made of paper, right? Sharon advanced. 'Now, Miss Cassidy, you won't look like a proper lady if you wear that nasty coat and those pants!'

'Okay! I'll wear that dress! No need to get violent.' After all, you've already done way more damage already…

'Pardon?'

'Nothing!'

'So, since you have agreed to help us find the Truth, with the possibility that you may also find some answers of your own, we –' Here, he received glares from the other occupants in the room '– ahem, I want you to confront Vincent Nightray at tonight's ball and do your best to get whatever Chain, Tragedy or Baskerville related information out of him!'

Waving his sleeved hands around like he was trying to fly, Break grinned widely as he finished giving his instructions. From what he knew of her so far, and his previous experiences with nobles becoming Contractors, he expected a 'No way!' or 'How?' from the redhead. Instead, Cassidy clearly answered:

'Aren't you gonna say that I look prettier like this or something?'

'Oh, so you lack confidence, do you? Well, maybe we should go forward with this plan after all…' Besides, it's not like I can judge that, he thought silently to himself.

Cassidy opened her mouth for a good comeback when Break interrupted her. 'Besides, complimenting young ladies is his job.' The white haired man gestured in the direction of the door to the room, which opened to reveal Oscar Bezarius.

'Break, you rascal! Just because you don't usually comment on the beauty of young women doesn't mean that the rest of us need to remain silent!' the large man boomed. Behind him stood his nephew; with bickering servant and Chain in tow.

Alice didn't hesitate to smear dirt on Gil's name. 'Hey there, I'm Alice, the powerful B-Rabbit. That wimpy guy over there with the smoking problem is Seaweed Head; the manservant of my manservant, and he's jealous of my power and that's why we're fighting!'

'Oi! Stupid rabbit! No one's stupid enough to be jealous of you, you meat-hogger!'

Mistaking the man's words, the Chain replied, 'I don't hug meat! I eat it!'

Cassidy took a step back from the hostility. According to Liam, it could reach a stage where guns, knives and scythes were involved.

'Don't worry; they never kill anyone with these fights!'

Feeling a hand on her shoulder and seeing white hair out of the corner of her eyes, Cassidy took this moment of relative privacy – everyone else's attention was fixed on the rabbit and Seaweed – to ask a few questions. 'Okay, what's with the hair?'

Already? That was fast. She's going to ask me about my past next pretty soon; I wonder how I can explain that to her without her freaking out? Formulating a cryptic answer, Break whispered mysteriously, 'It's very stylish, no?'

'Liam was right; no one can talk to you without going insane.'

'Why thank you!'

'So, Isabelle is a friend of Sharon's, who went to our neighbouring country to study exotic medicine and only recently came back. Right.' Oz couldn't help but stare. Cassidy looked gorgeous in her pink dress, the lilac ribbons in her hair giving a nice touch. Also, the dress hugged her sleek body in a way that complimented her figure. In short, Oz was following his uncle in the ways of the Bezarius.

Cassidy tried to convince herself that the reason Oz was staring was that her beautiful amber hair had now been dyed jet black, or that her heavy makeup had almost completely changed her face. Assuming that Vincent hadn't seen her much – he was mostly asleep during the meetings and interrogations, due to Yamane's power – they had all agreed that it was easy to fool him with Cassidy's altered appearance. Now, all they had needed was a convincing story to explain some of the Abyss related questions that she was going to ask.

Flashback:

The midnight moon shone through the window on the far side of the room, providing soft silver light where candles had died banishing the darkness with their flames.

'If we want Miss Cassidy to appear as some innocent and confused girl who was dragged into this entire thing all because of her friendship with you, Milady, we need her to be, well, you know…' Break's voice trailed off in his typical sing-song manner, but Sharon got his meaning.

'She needs to act different, correct?'

'Yes. And she needs to convince Vincent that the questions she asks are completely for her own knowledge and self-assurance, not because I ordered her to.'

'Don't worry. Cassidy's an intelligent girl at her best, plus she is motivated.'

'I just hope that her determination to find her missing father isn't turned against us.'

After checking that her outfit was at the peak of perfection, the Rainsworth lady addressed the newest addition to their group. 'One last time, if you don't mind, Miss Cassidy – or should I say, Miss Isabelle.'

"Isabelle" sighed heavily. Immediately, she received several annoyed – in Break's case, mock-grumpy – glances. Catching herself in an attempt to prove that she wouldn't blow the whole operation up, the girl coughed daintily instead.

Instead of a congratulations or praise for her acting prowess, the albino man offered some advice and motivation. 'Now, now, Miss Isabelle, you know what they say: Say a lie enough times and it becomes as the truth!'

'Sure. So if I say 'Break doesn't exist then –' even though half his face was covered, the subject of Cassidy's theory shot her a look that said "You just try that". 'Fine. I'm Sharon's childhood friend, Isabelle. I came back recently and got attacked by an Illegal Contractor but I was recued by – '

'– by yours truly!' chimed Break.

'– yeah, by Sugar-Throat. Of course, with us being friends and all, you let me in on the whole Abyss thing and now I'm dragged into this entire thing with you guys. But you've still given me the choice of becoming a Contractor or not so and most of the questions I ask will be related to Contractors until I somehow force him to talk about the Baskervilles and the Tragedy.'

'And if he doesn't want to talk about those rather sensitive topics?' Break made could everything sound awkward. Cassidy was beginning to get used to it.

'Then I say that I overheard you saying something about it and I'm curious and stuff.'

'You know, Break, I think you want Cassidy to mention you. You want to know what Vincent thinks of you.'

'Hahaha, aren't you a smart little boy?'

The carriage jolted to a stop. Announcing the obvious, Break exclaimed, 'Right, we're here!'

Ok. You're going to try to get a murderer to talk about his bloody past by posing as someone innocent and powerless, not to mention completely fake.

Cassidy tried to think of the positives. At least there's free food.

So, how was it? For those of you who didn't know that Vincent Nightray was involved with the Tragedy, sorry. But I did warn ya. Next few chapters will probably be on the ball. Please review; feel free to tell me if the romance isn't developing well or that I messed something up with the storyline or the words. Oh, and just as a warning, I don't like Vincent Nightray all that much. SO YOU BETTER WATCH OUT, SEWER RAT!