Hello, readers! Ash sure has a lot on his mind now. At first it seemed highly unlikely to him these girls would partake in any crime, or even cheat at contests, which is hardly a reason to have someone killed. But now, even he thinks he was being naive, as Paul has shoved reality into his face. Although he likes the girls, Paul's words have struck him. Let's see what happens!

OK, now you guys may have noticed a lot of this is told from a third person perspective of Ash. His thoughts are mostly explained, etc. I'll be hoping to change that from now on. Enough talk.

Enjoy chapter 5!


The scene: Veilstone City.

Ash sat alone at the hotel room's terminal , searching for more information about Dawn's, May's and Zoey's Coordinating histories. It was dark and everyone else was asleep; it had been another long day of fun with the girls. One which he had enjoyed, but he still had a job to do.

He looked up the Grand Festival and discovered it was a tournament various Coordinators competed in when they acquired five Contest ribbons from a particular region, then took part in that region's Grand Festival.

So Dawn and Zoey could have possibly competed together. Ash thought. May grew up in Hoenn, according to the Guild's archives, so she competed alone. After that, she went to Sinnoh and the three became friends. But that told him nothing of the girls' suspected offenses. Cheating.

The first sensible thing to do would be to check if they had actually competed in the Grand Festivals, which he did. He was mildly surprised to see so many people come onscreen when he checked the most recent Grand Festival in Sinnoh. They were listed alphabetically, each with a small picture of the Coordinator in question.

So he scrolled to 'D' and there it was: Dawn Berlitz of Twinleaf Town. Similarly, he spotted Zoey Sanders of Snowpoint under 'Z'. He opened a detailed profile of Dawn. It did not give any personal information; only her history of Coordinating, how and where she had obtained her ribbons granting her entry into the Festival itself. Unfortunately, the records of those Contests did not exist. Zoey's file was similar. Out of curiosity he checked another random profile.

Ash discovered that the records of that person's previous contests actually did exist, which severely discomforted him. The first things criminals did after a successful act, was to remove all traceable evidence. Such as records. He clenched his heart. It was not possible! There's no proof yet! Ash told himself. Feeling breathless, he looked up the Hoenn Grand Festival, looked up the profile of May Maple and, to his horror, found no previous records of Contests.

Horror pulling at his heartstrings, Ash wiped the screen clean of the girls' profiles. He realized he was breathing heavily and sweating. Why? Because, despite Paul's words changing him, he felt as though he had once again been naive. He felt as though he had been punched by a Hitmochan. By a Machamp.

No, he still needed proof! The unique absence of the girls' Contest records... unnerved him, but that was no guarantee they cheated. He wondered if there was any official punishment for cheating in Contests, or if someone had even attempted it yet.

Rebooting the terminal, he looked up Contest cheating. He found no indication that anyone had actually cheated, or at least anyone who had been caught in the act. But there it was a punishable offense. Depending on the severity of the violation of rules, the Coordinator could be fined, disqualified, or have their ribbons taken away.

But nowhere did it say about a 'death penalty' of any sort. Still... he wished he had not discovered that the girls' profiles were different from others. He almost felt betrayed, even though he had no actual proof of foul play in these Contests. Besides, Dawn had said only May had actually won the Grand Festival. If there was a time for a cheater to act, it would be the during the finale. It seemed he was only discovering more questions the harder he tried to find answers.

That was quite enough for one night. He quietly banged a fist on the table in frustration, sighed and put his head in his hands, then decided to get some sleep. As me made his way to the couch, the girls' bedroom opened. His Assassin reflexes made him tense and when Dawn came through she saw him awake and alert, in an almost combat stance. "A-are you OK, Ash?" she whispered nervously. Quickly, Ash relaxed and tried to reassure her with a smile. "I'm fine Dawn, why are you still awake?"

"I was just wondering whether you needed anything." she explained. Ash raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And how long have you known I was awake?" his tone was not stern. "Not long." she replied. "I just thought I heard something, peeked into here and saw you sitting with your head in your hands. Are you really alright?" Concern shone in her sapphire eyes.

"Sure, Dawn, no need to worry." Even a mere two days with her had gotten Ash rather attached to Dawn's catchphrase. "So," he continued, "why are you still awake?" he seemed unsatisfied with her first answer. Dawn looked away, and Ash was shocked. As she turned her head, he caught a glimpse of great pain and sadness in her beautiful blue eyes. "Well, I noticed you've been acting... rather depressed and isolated lately. I wanted to help."

Ash felt a jolt. Had he really been so obvious about the turmoil in his mind that Dawn had noticed? Apparently so. "So," she continued, "when I saw you awake, I just thought I'd see if there was anything I could do." she waited.

Inside, Ash felt both alarmed that the girl before him noticed his changed behavior and at the same time, touched at her concern for him. He had never felt like that about anyone, nor had he experienced such an affection for anyone else. "Well, I doubt it, Dawn." but he smiled and tried to express his appreciation for her offer in his voice. "Thanks anyway. But still... something else is troubling you." he added; and he did not need his honed senses to figure it out.

She looked straight at him. "Maybe you're right. I can't exactly... explain my problem, but I may be able to find out if you can help, if you let me."

"Sure." Ash nodded. "I'd like to help in any way I can."

Dawn's face lit up and, to Ash's surprise, she walked over to him until they were a foot apart. Ash's veins were pulsing with nervousness, but something kept his feet planted. Dawn then reached out hesitantly and, when Ash did not protest, took his hand. An involuntary but pleasant jolt ran from head to toe and he had a feeling she experienced a similar jolt. Ash gently stroked Dawn's soft fingers with his own, unable to explain his actions. It just felt... right.

Dawn's blue eyes stared into Ash's brown ones, a strange look in their eyes, unknown feelings rushing in them both. Dawn decided to take this further. Still hesitantly, she reached around Ash's back with one arm and pulled him closer gently. When he complied, she enveloped him in an embrace. Ash went stiff. Right now, his mind was blank. He forgot about everything. His life as an Assassin, his victims, this contract, the conflict of emotions that had been soaring mere minutes ago, everything was forgotten. Right now, all he could think about was the girl hugging him.

Slowly, he wrapped his arms around her waist, returning her embrace. It felt so good... He inhaled the strawberry scent of her hair, nuzzling his face in her head, while she did the same in his neck. This was no hug between friends. This was an intimate, passionate embrace. The kind lovers shared. And yet, Ash did not care; it felt more right than silencing any of his victims could ever hope to.

Slowly, Dawn pulled her face back, still keeping her arms around him. Ash smiled faintly, showing he was comfortable with whatever she decided. Throwing caution to the winds, she pushed her mouth onto Ash's in a kiss so amazingly passionate, he would have never thought she was capable of it.

While hugging Dawn, to Ash it felt right. But now... Now, while he was kissing her, now, with his lips resting on hers and passion fueling between them, he knew it was right. He had gone to heaven without dying, there was no other way to describe it. Ash hungrily kissed her back, his tongue moving slickly over her sleek, luscious lips. It was so sweet, and he would've given anything to have it last longer. But the need for air overpowered them and they parted and smiled at each other.

"You helped, Ash." Dawn said lovingly. "You definitely did."

"No problem." he gazed at her. No more words were needed. Still smiling at him, she backed up and went back into her room.

Standing still on the spot, Ash was stunned. Stunned in a way no amount of training could ever hope to abate. He did not have the words to describe the warm emotions pulsing through him now. After all, until then, they were completely unknown to him. Growing up as an Assassin had been a cold, rigorous life. There had always something been missing from that, even if he never knew it. Love. He could not recall ever being loved by anyone.

And now, in this very room, a girl who he barely knew had just shown him love. A girl he had been ordered to kill. With that very thought, everything rushed back. And now, he felt unclean. What had he gotten himself into?

***

The next day...

Drew and Paul stood with Ash. The latter had woken the other two to explain his findings the previous night. But privately, he wished for something else to think about rather than his newfound feelings for Dawn, which made it all the more difficult to think of having to kill her. No, not difficult. Impossible.

"Well, Ash," Paul said after Ash had finished. Ash braced himself, no doubt expecting something proclaiming he was right all along. Unsurprisingly, he was correct. "this only makes it more likely they're hiding something."

"No!" Ash replied with unintended fire. "What?" Paul asked, bewildered. "You refuse to accept proof when it's you who discovered it!" Ash calmed his voice, then said: "It's hardly proof, Paul. Their past records are just missing, which could mean a number of things."

Drew, who had been silent until then, interjected: "You know, Ash... Maybe these girls are being framed." As this slowly sank in, Ash felt delighted inside. Such a simple hunch, but... that was actually possible! "That's true, Drew!" he said aloud, barely hiding the joy in his voice. It seemed Dawn's love had a greater influence on him than his allegiance to the Guild. "It makes perfect sense!" He got up and started pacing.

"It wouldn't be too hard to erase those records for an expert." he said eagerly. "Then all he would have had to do was present the Guild with this. He could have said the girls erased their Contest records themselves, which contained dark secrets. Hell, he could have said murder was concealed behind them and the Guild would accept it; this is evidence enough for them! But," he paused. "The Guild probably didn't have them in the database before the client showed up. They didn't know anything about Dawn, May or Zoey and the client could have used that to his advantage!" He felt blissfully free with this brighter possibility of a conspiracy against the girls instead of them committing actual crimes. Although something still bothered him.

"I still fail to see who would want to kill these three." Drew voiced Ash's concerns. "For whatever reasons, it doesn't feel right." Ash nodded in agreement, then looked at Paul. Surely even he could not deny this hunch had potential. Paul closed his eyes for a moment, thinking deeply. After almost ten seconds, he looked at Drew.

"I must admit, Drew," he began. "Your mind works well. I agree, that certainly is possible. It's such a simple hunch, I'm surprised I didn't consider it before." Ash was astonished. Was this really Paul talking. Not that he was complaining, but what a turn! Then Paul smirked. "Oh, wait. No, I'm not surprised. I didn't consider it... because it's laughable!"

Ash started to speak angrily, but to his horror, the door opened and Zoey came through. "Oh, hey guys! You're up, cool. What's laughable, Paul?" she looked curiously at the arrogant trainer. Ash hoped frantically that Drew would come up with something and his wish was granted. "My hairstyle." Drew said in an incredibly controlled tone, under the tense circumstances.

"Oh." the redhead giggled lightly, which caused Paul's eyebrows to go up. "I agree, Paul." She winked and then exited. Ash and Drew looked at Paul in astonishment. "She likes you, Paul!" Drew exclaimed. "You, of all people!"

Paul ignored this. "I'll consider it." he said shortly, before heading to the bathroom. Drew grinned at Ash. "He likes her too! What else could change his mind like that?" Ash shrugged, his mind lingering on Dawn and the perfect feeling of kissing her. "Um, Ash? Do I need to get Dawn?" Drew broke in. Ash blinked, looking at his friend. "Dawn? What about her?"

Drew smirked. "No need for her now. Apparently the very mentioning of her name is enough to bring you out of a trance." Ash could not hide a faint blush, which wiped the smile off of Drew's face. "What? Really?! I was only joking." he said seriously.

"Don't worry, it's nothing like that." Ash assured him. The tone seemed unconvincing, even to him. Sure enough, Drew did not buy it. "Ash, what's happened?" he asked, a concerned look in his eye. Ash opened and closed his mouth voicelessly, then just... spilled it. All of it, in three words:

"I love Dawn!"

After he said that, he felt as though he had just run a marathon, even though it had been in merely a loud whisper in which he said the words. Drew seemed shocked. "What?! For how long?" his eyes were wide.

Ash shrugged. There was no point in hiding anything now. "I only realized last night, but it's been like that ever since I saw her. She's... gorgeous. But not just in one way." Drew gaped. "I know what you mean, Ash, but... how do you plan to carry out the contract now?" he asked quietly. "I can't imagine you would want to."

Ash shook his head. "That's why I was so thrilled when you suggested this whole thing being a set-up to get the girls killed. It made me feel... happy knowing that they, that Dawn, may have lived completely normal lives. To make it worse, this is no secret love. It would be the ultimate betrayal to kill her. One which I don't think I will be able to forgive myself for." He covered his eyes with a hand.

Drew shook his head in amazement. "What did we miss last night?" Ash smiled reminiscently. "A great deal." he said. "A great deal."

*

Meanwhile, in the other room, Dawn, May and Zoey were having a little chat of their own.

"They're awake." Zoey informed May and Dawn. "They're discussing things."

"Like?" May asked.

Zoey seemed to be fighting to keep her face straight. "Drew's hairstyle."

"Hey!" May protested as Dawn rolled around laughing. "It's not bad!" Zoey smiled. "Well, you always were a picker of favorites, May. I must say, I agree with Paul on this one." It was May's turn to smile. "Ah, Paul. Well, no need to explain who you prefer." To their surprise, Zoey just shrugged, an odd look on her face. "Well, Dawn." May joked. "Looks like Ash is yours. I wouldn't have thought we would find matches so soon after I brought up the subject in Eterna."

Dawn tried to hide a blush. She had, of course, not mentioned the events of the previous night to either of them, but they either suspected it already or were merely eager to get this going. The latter, no doubt. As May started talking about something not compatible with Dawn's current state of mind, the latter's mind wandered.

She thought of last night, wondered what had compelled her to hold Ash's hand, embrace him, then actually kiss him. It seemed so bizarre now, yet at the time it felt so right. But Dawn still remembered the pleasant feeling of his lips on hers with his protective arms holding her close. The ghost of a tingle still remained on her lips.

The rest of the day passed very unusually for the boys. With their new... interest in them, the girls, with the exception of Dawn, were acting per-eeeettty flirtatious around Drew in Paul. Sometimes in odd ways, mostly reserved for Paul. Zoey seemed to know just how to get at him. Dawn would occasionally say things like: "I still think we're too young for this." even though it was she alone who had already expressed her love for Ash.

The Assassins took the girls on what was more like a group date than an actual tour, which was rather uncomfortable, particularly for Paul.

Quite late in the evening, Paul stood with Ash and Drew alone. "Well, guys, I've thought about all of this." he started. "The Intel Ash took from the archives, the girls' behavior I've analyzed myself, Ash's newfound discovery that their pasts are blank and finally, Drew's idea that they could be being framed. Now, I know you're in charge of this operation, Ash but I think you should take what I say seriously." Ash nodded. "Sure, Paul, I always do." The purple-haired youth tilted his head.

He spoke: "I think..."

Must... contain... laughter.... WAHAHAHHAHA! CLIFFHANGER!

............

Sorry, I'm so sorry, but I couldn't figure out where to end this chapter and this seemed appropriate. Do you hate me? T_T jk

Well, what has Paul decided? Wait and see!

R&R, dear friends!

Daijobu!