A/N: So this chapter is pretty fiesty. Idk why. Just wanted a Paladin fight. Tori and me came up with an idea of her beating a Paladin with a stick, so I had to use it. Anyhoo. My photobucket will probably have pictures of the costumes worn later in the chapter and next soon. (For reference, yeah?) Lawl.
Read, review, and enjoy!

Chapter 24: Distraction

(David POV)

The two girls walked out from the hallway and David started towards his jacket that was hanging on the hook by the front door. He pulled it on and Tori was looking at him curiously. "Where are we going?"

David opened the door and motioned for them to go out. "Into the heart of New York City," he said. Tori walked past him and Ashley eyed him suspiciously. "Something wrong?" he asked her.

Ashley walked past him as she said, "You're up to something Rice… I can feel it."

David watched as she hurried to catch up to Tori at the end of the hallway. 'Hm. Just as Griffin predicted.' He shook his head as he sprinted down to catch up to them.

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(Tori POV)

She scanned over a rack of clothes and Ashley jumped, appearing next to it. "Boo," she said with a grin.

Tori flinched back and frowned at her. "And you wonder why the Paladins attacked you," she grumbled. Ashley pouted and held up a black t-shirt that said "I heart vampires." Tori rolled her eyes. "Oh god…" She turned and looked over another rack of clothes. As she picked up a pair of jeans, David approached her. Tori sighed and draped the jeans over her arm. "I'm not finding much here I like. It's a bit high end…" She returned the jeans to their spot with a sigh.

"But the clothes are so pretty!" Ashley cooed from behind her. Tori looked over her shoulder and caught sight of Ashley with a couple of shirts in her arms.

She rolled her eyes and David said, "Why don't we go look at the next store?" She turned back to David and nodded. He waved for Ashley to follow him and they wandered over to the cash register to pay for the few things she had found. Tori waited for them by the door for a few minutes until Ashley skipped over with David in tow. "Ready then?" he asked.

Tori nodded and the three made their way out the large doors. They walked out onto a parking lot and saw various cars arriving. One was driving unusually fast and Tori was feelings uneasy. 'Cars are supposed to be slow in parking lots…' Her senses felt as if they were at an all time high and she stopped dead in her tracks. David and Ashley turned to look at her and she shouted, "Run!" Ashley shot her a confused look and David watched a silver SUV. "Go!" Tori yelled as people hurried out of the SUV. They were Paladins, without disguises and looking very obvious. Ashley grabbed Tori's arm and took off towards a small wall near them. David was right behind them she saw as Ashley jumped them over the obstacle. Paladins ran after them, shooting things that whizzed by their heads.

Tori looked over her shoulder again and David slowed, punching a Paladin man swiftly in the face. "Keep going!" he shouted.

A woman lunged at him and he jumped back. A third Paladin dashed past them, targeting her and Ashley. "Shit!" Tori said as she crouched down and covered her head with her arms. The man shot something towards Ashley but Tori sensed the jump. 'Please be okay. Please be okay.' Tori looked up and saw Ashley get the upper hand. But David wasn't doing so well. He had blood on his lower lip and seemed slightly weary. Tori got up and made a break for a tree growing by the front entrance. A large branch caught her eye and she picked it up. 'Not heavy. Score!' She rushed over to David and whacked the woman across the back of the head. The woman fell lifelessly to the ground. The Paladin swung towards her and she held the branch out, causing him to smash his fist into it. He winced and David pushed him down to the concrete.

Ashley jumped beside them and said with a grin, "Time to split." She took hold of Tori's arm and David's shirt before jumping them away.

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(Ashley POV)

'How the hell did I manage to hold onto this…?' Ashley stared at the dark plastic bag in her hand from the store. She shrugged and looked at David, who was being tended to by a worried Tori.

David winced when she touched a red mark forming near the corner of his left eye. "I'm okay Tori," he chuckled. He gave a quick look around and asked, "Where are we?"

Ashley stood up, brushing off her jeans and said, "Me and Tori's old place. They've been here before but I figured Tori would want some stuff."

Tori smiled at her. "Thoughtful, thanks." She began helping David up when Ashley shut her eyes, inhaling the familiar scent of the apartment. "Ash, a little help?"

Ashley glanced over at the two and gave them a suggestive look. "Really?" She walked away, hearing Tori grumble. The vanilla aroma that the house was always filled with got stuck in her nose. 'David's house smells more like…a mixture of herbs and hair gel.' She made her way into the old kitchen and saw a box of pocky lying randomly on the counter. Picking it up, she thought she sensed a jump. She dashed out to the living room and didn't see or hear anyone. "Damn it! They left me," she grumbled. Ashley ran into her old room and grabbed her military style jacket. She threw it on before jumping back to David's place.

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(Griffin POV)

He was sitting in the spare room, reading a book he found in Ashley's bag when she jumped into the room. Ashley looked at him with wide eyes. "M-my book," she stammered. She shot him an angry look before stomping over to him and grabbing the book from him. Griffin watched her put the book back in the bag carefully. Ashley got up and faced him once more. "What are you doing here?" she asked with a slight tone of frustration lingering in her voice.

Griffin picked up the bag that was concealed at his side and tossed it at her. "It's for later today. Everything's there and don't go changin' it." She looked at him curiously and he got up, making his way to the door.

"What's later?" he heard Ashley ask.

He looked over his shoulder with a smirk. "It's a secret." With that, Griffin went into the living room. He sat on the couch and sensed a jump as David and Tori appeared. Griffin dug in his jacket pocket and pulled out the set of ear he was forced to wear at the anime convention.

David looked at him curiously. "What's with the ears?" Tori also had a look of wonder on her face.

Griffin got up and placed the ears on David's head. "You wear them later. No ifs, ands, or buts."

David made a small frown as Tori asked, "Are we going to another convention? What do I get to wear?"

Griffin shrugged. "Dunno. You should find a costume within an hour or two though."

Tori sent him a salute and said, "Aye captain!" with a smile.

He smirked at the giggling Tori before jumping back to his lair. 'Time to get ready.'

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(Tori POV)

David helped Tori scour the Harajuku district of Tokyo for nearly an hour for a costume for her. After while, Tori felt she would never find the right costume. In an act of desperation, they made their way into the last shop on a map they had. Tori walked into the store and was overwhelmed by bright colors. The shop had multiple colors on the walls and there was loud j-pop music playing through speakers. Tori swayed side to side slightly to the music as she walked. She eyed a few of the gothic-lolita costumes, but didn't find them very interesting. She caught sight of an orange and yellow maid's uniform that looked a lot like Pudding's from Tokyo Mew Mew. Her eyes grew wide and she looked over her shoulder at David. "Look at this one, David," she said as she moved aside of the costume.

David looked it over and nodded. "It's cute. You would look nice in it."

Tori grinned and asked, "Do you mind if I get it?"

He shook his head and pulled out his wallet. Tori was smiling as she walked over to the counter. "Konichiwa!" Tori said brightly to the young girl behind the counter. The girl was in a blue and white maid's outfit with a bonnet that matched. "Um… Ikura desu ka?" Tori pointed to the Pudding maid costume and then to herself.

The girl nodded and said, "13, 473 yen." Tori's eyes widened in confusion, but she nodded. The girl walked around and got the costume off the display.

David stood by Tori and asked, "How much?"

"13,473 yen," Tori said in a monotonous voice. The numbers rolled off her tongue. She didn't know the currency difference off the top of her head, but she assumed it was a lot.

David gave her a nod and pulled out two ten thousand yen notes. He laid them on the counter and the woman returned with the costume folded neatly in a pile. Her eyes grew wide at the sight of the money. "Keep the change," he said as he slid the money to the young girl.

She bowed and said, "Arigato gozaimasu."

Tori smiled and replied "Doo itashimashi!" with a small bow. She took the costume and she looked at David. He had a look of surprise on his face. "What?" she asked, feeling her face heat up from the attention.

"You know Japanese?" he asked as they began out of the shop.

She nodded enthusiastically. "The love of this place made me learn the language." David gave a nod, signaling he understood. She felt his hand in hers before the pull of the jump.

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(Ashley POV)

She stared in the mirror. 'What the hell…' Ashley frowned at the mostly green outfit she now had on. The long sleeved shirt under the dark tank top looked weird at first to her. 'The black complements the green, but what about the silver?' Apparently, it was a slow day for her. Something clicked in her mind and Ashley said, "Oh." She began to brush her hair and pull her bangs in front of her face. In the back of her mind, Ashley felt the familiar sensation of a ping.

"Ashley!" she heard Tori call. Tori burst into the bathroom and held out a small pile of what looked to be clothes. "I found it! The perfect maid's costume!" Ashley smiled and turned lightly. Tori shot her an odd look. "What's with your hair?" she asked.

She shook her head a little bit and said, "Trying to put color in my hair."

"But you do that all the time… This for the convention?"

She shrugged. "Griffin kinda threw this stuff at me," Ashley told her as she stepped to the side and held out her arms, showing the outfit.

She saw from beneath her long bangs that Tori shrugged. "It's okay, but wait until you see my costume!" Tori's voice was in a higher pitch than usual when she spoke. Ashley smiled and nodded gently. She scampered away and Ashley turned back to the mirror.

Within a few minutes, she had applied the color to her bangs successfully. Her bangs and few front strands of her hair were an almost white color. Ashley twirled a strand around her finger before another ping rang in the back of her head. 'Might be Griffin. Maybe I can ask him about this whole thing...' Hurrying out to the living room, she caught sight of the back of someone. They were wearing a long brown leather trench coat and what looked to be an olive green fedora. Her eyes grew wide. 'Who the hell is this…?' The mystery person turned around and it was Griffin. He had on a purple button down under a darker vest with a pair of grey pants. "Griffin?" she asked in a confused tone.

He smirked at her and said, "Silver looks good on yeh."

Ashley was still awe struck. It looked as if Griffin's hair was combed down and protruding from under the hat, too. She crossed her arms and asked, "And who are you supposed to be?"

Griffin's look turned to shock. "'ave you never heard o' Gambit?"

She rolled her eyes. "Geek," she mumbled under her breath.

David came out from the kitchen, with out the ears, and holding a bowl of something. She looked at him curiously. He looked at the two. "What? Something going on?" he asked while swallowing a mouthful of whatever he was eating.

"Where're your ears?" Griffin asked sternly. David sighed and motioned towards the coffee table. "Alright. Get ready cause we've gotta leave then. Don't wanna be late."

Ashley turned and began back towards the spare room. "I still wanna know where we're going," she said loudly.

"You still gotta wait," Griffin shouted back. She scoffed and walked back into the bathroom.