Hello again, everyone! Well, the Assassins have met the girls and now Ash is only becoming more and more uneasy about the contract, since the girls look and act more innocent than he could have expected. So, how will he coax his way into their trust and ask them about their Coordinating history? And how do Drew and Paul feel about the girls?

Let's find out! Enjoy chapter 4!


The scene: Veilstone City.

Ash, Drew and Paul sat across Dawn, May and Zoey at a restaurant. After the tour, Ash had insisted they sit down and eat and also agreed to pay for it. They seemed deeply grateful for all this kindness, and at least the part of gaining their trust seemed no problem now. But perhaps that was what troubling him as he sat across the three beautiful, kind beings.

He had never needed to socially converse with any of his previous targets, but they seemed to know and Assassin when they saw one. They had panicked on sight of him, sometimes in barely detectable ways, but they had reacted.

But now, these girls treated all of them, even Paul, who seemed to be trying to ignore them; as if they had been friends for so long, even though it had only been a day. Drew had followed the plan wonderfully, acting as the enthusiastic one, while Ash took the lead. Paul was a different story. He had been unusually silent, even for him. But it felt like a thoughtful silence, not a cold or ignorant one. As if he was truly reconsidering the entire prospect of this contract that he had so arrogantly accepted merely a day ago. Ash could only hope that was the case.

But Ash felt something else too. Even though this plan of getting on the girls' good side had been so he would be able to ask about what their profiles in the database had told him, he felt as if he was sincerely making friends. It was a rather intimate feeling he was not accustomed to and yet, it felt good. Although he constantly reminded himself of his real job, his secret, genuine affection for the girls never went away.

May cut into his thoughts, "Did we ever thank you for all this? I mean, you three just met us, but you've been very kind to us from the beginning."

Ash spread his hands modestly, "It's nothing. It's actually a bit of a hobby of ours; showing visitors around."

"Well, I hope they appreciate what you do. We sure do." Dawn smiled, which once again clouded Ash's mind with clashing feelings. The long-existing trust in his brotherhood, or his newfound affection for the girls he was supposed to kill? Which would prevail? Ash tried to clear his head and smiled back and Ash's eyebrows furrowed slightly as he saw a shade of pink flash over Dawn's face.

"You know..." Drew said thoughtfully, "There is still a lot to know about this place. I take it you. three are impressed so far with the city?" They nodded eagerly. "Well then, permit us to show you more. It would be an honor for lovely girls such as yourselves." His eyes rested on May, which caused her to look away, blushing slightly.

"And what does Paul think of this?" Zoey asked, raising her eyebrows inquiringly and looking at Paul, who, after a moment of silence, replied: "I don't mind."

"OK, then." Zoey concluded brightly. Paul's eyes still lingered on the redhead for some reason. She noticed and he looked away again. Unseen, Ash and Drew smirked slightly at each other, as did Dawn and May. After all, they both had rather... unique methods of expressing their feelings. Methods which were known to their companions.

"Well," Dawn said. "do you live close to the hotel complex? We could come see you and then you could show us around some more!" Ash tensed inwardly. If this phase of the plan worked, they would be with the girls at almost all times. "We..." he began in a perfect hesitant voice, "don't really have anywhere to live."

"What?!" The girls burst out simultaneously. A perfect reaction, Ash thought. "But you look like normal citizens! How did you afford this restaurant?" Zoey exclaimed. Drew chimed into the act as well, saying: "Well, we have been welcoming visitors for a long time and I guess they have shown appreciation for what we do, which is why we can afford decent clothing. It also keeps food on the table and occasionally allows us to rent hotel rooms. As for today" he shrugged, "it's a special occasion." Paul remained in silence that seemed sober under the current situation, which Ash put to his advantage. "Paul's been doing this the longest and it's... come with consequences." he said, with just the right touch of sympathy.

Drew noticed Zoey staring at Paul sympathetically and narrowed his eyes. Who could feel like that with Paul? Oh, that's right, someone just like him! If this contract doesn't work out, he thought, those two would make a nice couple. He would've told Paul if he wasn't looking to get out of this restaurant in one piece.

"Well if they haven't shared their shelter with you," Dawn said, "I think we should." She exchanged glances with her friends, who seemed to agree.

Yes. It had indeed appeared to work, Ash thought, satisfied. By being allowed to stay with their targets, Ash could perhaps get a chance to ask about their past life over casual conversation. That, or he could do a little snooping. He smiled at the girls appreciatively, "You say we are kind, but you're the ones who have done the ultimate kindness to us. We gladly accept." Ash spoke for them all, as Drew also smiled and nodded. Paul tilted his head once.

"OK, then!" Dawn said happily. They finished their meal and Ash paid the bill for the 'special occasion', as Drew had called it. As the Assassins followed the girls to their hotel, Paul motioned to Ash to hang back with him. "What's up, Paul?" Ash asked, though he had a slight suspicion.

"Well, Ash." Paul answered, as they trailed behind Drew and the girls, "I think you're letting these new feelings get the best of you." Mmhmm. Ash thought grimly. "Paul, you've been with these three for a day. Now, take in their looks, the innocence in their eyes, how they talk and how they act. Do they look, act or feel even remotely like criminals?! Or cheaters, for that matter?" he whispered furiously.

"Please, don't be such an idiot." Ash bristled at the insult. "You're being naive. Appearances alone tell next to nothing about the person inside, don't tell me you don't know or haven't considered that! It's a basic teaching at the Guild! As for how they act or... feel." He smirked slightly. "Perhaps that's just all it is: acting. And they don't feel like criminals or cheaters, I'll admit, but we're wearing disguises too. They seem to feel we can be trusted, even though we're actually killers. Maybe they're using the same ploy against us. Consider all that, Ash, before you make your final decision." he walked faster to catch up with Drew, leaving Ash behind.

Ash's pace remained slow. As if the clash of emotions in him wasn't enough pandemonium, Paul just had to make those points. The worst part was, it was all possible and he even felt like an idiot. Sure, he had considered the fact that appearances could be deceiving, but even that now seemed insignificant compared to the points Paul had just made.

Struggling to clear his mind of doubt and disorder, Ash moved to catch up with the others.

On arriving at the hotel, the Assassins had done their best to act as though being allowed in the room was a luxury they were far unaccustomed to, and to Ash, it seemed to work. They had smiled, seeming happy that they finally got the pleasures they deserved for their kindness. The boys had not objected to sleeping on the couch and requested mattresses, acting as though it was a plushy bed compared to what they usually slept on.

For the remainder of the previous night, Ash explained how the trio usually got on with life. He had said they often slept and ate, when they could afford to buy food, at the abandoned warehouse. He convinced them the girls that they had gotten over the fact that they could remember nothing about their parents or their life before coming to Veilstone, where Ash, Drew and Paul had come together. This story seemed to move Ash's audience and they wished them good night as they went into their own section of the suite.

Once alone, the Assassins lay awake, each mind occupied with different matters. A battle was being waged in Ash's mind between what the Guild had ordered him to do and what he truly thought. He liked the girls, he was sure of that now. He enjoyed their company, especially Dawn's... OK, that was going a bit too far. Friendship: fine for now, something more: out of the question.

On the other hand, the faith he had placed in the Guild had served him well in the past. He felt compelled to do the same now, but he had not been this closely involved with his targets before. Even then, years of doing as the Guild demanded had made it an instinct to trust whatever his superiors told him. In addition to that, Paul's talk with him made him even more uneasy. He realized he didn't want to believe that Dawn, May and Zoey were criminals. He had become that attached to them; and it made him feel worse to think that Paul was right and they were just seducing them with their falsely kind personalities so the Assassins would get thrown off their trail.

Drew's thoughts were similar, though much less of a conflict, since Ash was the one in charge of this operation. In his case, he rather liked May above the others. Her plain, but special personality just struck him as likable. Though he too had no plans to take things very far.

His allegiance to the Guild did factor into the equation and it made him think, as Ash had said, what was truth and what was lies. When Ash had explained the records of the girls to him and Paul, he had thought them a bit... bombastic, but had dismissed it as relatively unimportant. Meeting them changed that. Had he witnessed Paul's words to Ash, perhaps he would have thought differently about matters.

Paul, of course took his own advice and was much more cautious around Dawn, May and Zoey. He had been unimpressed with the information Ash had taken from the database and meeting the girls only proved he was wrong, in his opinion. These 'innocent and kind beings', as Ash described them, could very likely just be very good at taking on different personalities. Who knew how they really lived life?

Although.... Zoey intrigued him. Not so much that he brought up conversation with her, yet he was still intrigued. She seemed proud, confident and bold. Much like himself, with the absence of his cold heart and arrogance. But she was... quite different from other girls he had met. But then, perhaps that was part of their ploy. He would not be fooled.

After what felt like a long time, they fell asleep.

***

The next day...

"Wake up, guys!" Ash was awoken by Dawn's cheery voice. Leave it to her to rudely wake someone up without being rude. Managing a small smile, he sat up, saying: "Well, well, you're an early riser." She gave him a smug look. "We have a routine around here, so buck up!"

"Don't need to tell me twice." Ash laughed lightly, getting up and nudging Drew as well. "Come on, Drew, May will have your head if you're not up early."

"Oh?" The green-haired boy said sleepily, rising. "I seem to have forgotten the existence of rules in civilization." Ash and Dawn laughed. In his mind. Ash reviewed what had just happened: Dawn had woken him up, he didn't care and actually flirted with her a bit, then woke Drew up who made a joke that made them laugh. It felt like they had been friends for years, and it was not necessarily a good thing at the moment. It felt good, yes, but Paul's words had cut him deep.

"You know," Drew continued, "If anyone should be worried, it's Paul. I'm sensing Zoey can be scary when she wants to."

"You don't know the half of it." Dawn replied.

"Oh, don't worry," came Paul's voice, who had just woken up, "I think I can handle her." his tone was bitterly sarcastic, but Dawn laughed as if it was a joke. Ash shook his head in wonder, his mind temporarily wandering, all thought of the Guild and Paul's words temporarily erased from his mind. What sadistic person would want to kill these angelic beings? That's what they were. He could not find any other words to describe them. Their personalities, their look, everything was perfect.

His mind, straying further, lingered on Dawn. Dawn, with beautiful sapphire eyes which could melt the coldest heart and midnight blue hair that flowed down her shoulders like a gallant waterfall. And her voice... he could not find words to describe it. It was like Heaven singing to him, a light, calming melody that left the world with nothing but pure bliss.

He did not realize how long he had been thinking like this, but it was enough to get Dawn's attention. "Ash? Ash!" she called, waving her hand in front of his eyes. No response. A sly smile spread across her face. "OK, then, how about this?" And she leaned forward and kissed his cheek.

Well, it definitely worked; he came back to reality, his senses spinning in pandemonium, the spot where her soft lips had touched his face still burning. He looked at her, his face red and took a step back, muttering incoherently. She simply giggled and said: "No problem, Ash. Well, breakfast is ready, so come when you're ready." still smiling at Ash, she exited the room.

Drew laughed in triumph. "HA! You scored, Ash!"

"Oh, shut up." Ash shot back, though the corners of his mouth twitched. Paul got up and as he passed by Ash, he muttered: "I'd watch it around her, Ash. A word of warning from a friend."

Well, that definitely brought his conflicting emotions back. He decided it was finally time to ask about the girls' past. Before this got any more complicated.

The boys sat across the girls, eating a breakfast prepared by the latter trio. Although he ate actively, Ash was deciding how best to ask about this. Eventually, he decided on the casual: "So, tell me , what do you three do for a living? Surely you can't just be touring Sinnoh." This seemed to work fine.

"That's true." Zoey replied. "You could say we're on a vacation. This may surprise you, but we have the same career paths."

"And that is...?" Ash asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Coordinating, of course!" May said happily. "It's awesome!"

Ash's heart sank. He had really been hoping that the database had been wrong about the girls from the start and that they were not Coordinators at all. Looking back at that, he realized how stupid that hope sounded.

"From what I hear, it sure is." Ash replied, thankfully managing to retain a normal expression. "How far have you gotten in this career pursuit?"

"Well," Dawn replied. "We've all competed in the Grand Festival but May is the only one who won it. But me and Zoey came close. You seem interested in Coordinating." she noted.

"Well, it's an interesting topic." he said lightly. He felt even worse now. What they had told him could maybe, just maybe, match what the Guild's database told him. He was too conflicted. "Excuse me." he got up and went in the room he, Drew and Paul shared. He sat on the couch and put his head in his hands. Coordinating, cheating... it made no sense! It just... didn't. In fact, he tried whispering to himself: 'Dawn/May/Zoey cheated.' No matter who it was, it did not match. It didn't sound right, nor did it feel right.

Part of him, the part influenced by the Guild and Paul's reasoning, told him he was just angry that things had not played out the way he had hoped. That he was once again being idiotic and childish. Now breathing heavily, he had a determined look on his face. This was not over yet. He needed to dig deeper.

Good God. I must say, what a horrible chapter. Far too slow in plot progression. Please, bear with it; I'll try to make up for it in the next chapter, you have my word.

Let me say something; I really, really, REALLY want everyone who reads this story to review it. It would mean a lot. Even if you hate the story, which I'm sure some of you do. So please, feel free to leave your opinion. BUT, no flaming!

R&R, dear friends!

Daijobu!