"Alexandra, what are you doing out here?" Alexandra, upon hearing the familiar voice, slowly turned her head toward the direction of Malik Al-Sayf. His dark colored hood had shielded much of his face from the ever present pounding drops of rain as he approached her. Unlike him, the Hungarian woman's hood had been removed – in fact, it had never been moved from its spot since she set foot out of her home, which only caused her dark colored locks of hair to become dampened and stick to her tan skin. Her expression did not seem to give much care to the falling rain or her soaked clothing, but instead welcomed it, something that troubled the former Assassin only a little. It was odd, he found himself admitting, to see her standing out there by herself with no one else, standing in the rain as if it was never even there. It was unclear to the Dai as to why she chose to be out here by herself, and it was today that he decided to question her. "You will catch a cold if you stand out here like this." He told her.
With a small smile, Alexandra shrugged absently before looking back up at the sky, closing her brown eyes in the process and inhaling the calming scent of rain.
"I have been out in the rain many times before this day, Malik," she explained, enjoying the feel of the water against her skin, "and not once have I caught any ailments because of it."
"Do not be surprised if you do tomorrow morning," Malik commented as he stopped right next to her, placing his only hand on the railing. "The doctors here will believe you have lost your mind when they hear how you became that way."
"And?" She questioned as she looked back out at the small buildings that made up Masyaf, leaning against the wooden railings absently. "You make it seem as if I really care what they think. Besides, if they ask, I will tell them I was enjoying myself."
The Dai chuckled and shook his head at her childlike words, sensing her pride almost immediately when she showed just how much she really cared about what others would think of her. In some aspects, Alexandra reminded Malik of himself – in some aspects. She was almost just as stubborn as he was – and it took a lot of pride to admit it himself – and she seldom gave much of a care about the little things in life. The little things, as Malik assumed was in Alexandra's case, happened to be the rain itself. When he warned her of catching a cold, she simply brushed it off her shoulder, as if it did not matter to her if she became ill the next morning. That was something he used to do when Kadar brought something that was of very little importance to him – it may not have been toward the rain, but to other things he deemed "little." Hell, he even did to Altaïr sometimes, but Malik believed it had become a habit of his since he was a child. He was unsure as to how Alexandra became the way she was, and it only picked his curiosity to find out just what exactly it was that made the two very similar to one another.
"Any particular reason why you are so fond of the rain?" He asked curiously, hoping to get a response. "I have never actually met someone so calm and collected when standing in rain, so I am a little curious to know your reason."
It took a moment for the Hungarian to reply, as she was enjoying the rain a little more, but eventually she did.
"It reminds me of home," she finally explained, opening her eyes and looking back at him. The raindrops that had fallen onto her face gave her the appearance of crying, but would have been disregarded immediately due to the smile on her face. However, Malik could feel as if there was something deeper than just a homesick feeling. However, instead of openly questioning it, he tried a different approach.
"It rains a lot in Hungary," he said, more like a statement than an actual question itself. It only made Alexandra chuckle and shake her head.
"No, not much." She looked at the sky again, a bit of a glimmer in them. "But when it did, I would immediately remember my family and I. I remember how we would run outside and spend so much time together. Running, laughing, dancing, everything imaginable. It reminds me of the days when I was actually happy. Not that I am not happy now, though. Just when I was happy with my family." It was seconds later that her smile suddenly fell from her lips. "Then again, it also reminds me of…the sad ones."
Tilting his head slightly like a curious cat, he turned to face her more.
"The sad ones?" He inquired. "What do you mean?"
Her head lowered slightly, pieces of her dark hair falling into her face. It was clear to him that she was now upset, something that greatly troubled the Dai even further than before.
"Well, with every happy memory, there is also one of sadness to make the happiness more special," she said. She looked at him. "It is something I came up with when I was very young, before I left Hungary and came to Syria." She shook her head, moving back to the topic at hand. "I remember the sadness that I felt as I walked the long path, which was much more prominent than those of happiness. I remembered finding out when family members died, trouble within our village, or something going wrong in our lives. I suppose the rain was a means of calming my soul. Still," her head lowered more, "I can still feel…sad whenever it rains. No matter how much I think of the happiest memories, the saddest ones always come back to haunt me." She looked up again. "It's a never ending cycle, I suppose."
He stared at her for a long moment, looking into her eyes as if she was a completely different person. Never had he since the strong-willed, stubborn Novice appear...upset in anyway. From the looks of it, she never wanted to go back home ever, and has stuck to that since. However, when she spoke of the sadness that the rain brought, it made him wonder if she really was homesick. Oddly enough, it made him frown. She would not have left home were it not for a good reason. Then again, when a person leaves home, that person may feel like going home for a little while just to see how much has changed. For Alexandra, that thought never crossed her mind, so she uses the rain as an alternative. Unfortunately, the rain also brought back a lot of painful memories. No one should ever have to deal with living in the past. It was the future that mattered these days, especially when it was days when anything bad could happen. Not only that, but it was unhealthy for a person to keep looking over her shoulder to see what could have been. He knew that all too well.
Using his only hand, Malik took hold of her hood and put it over her face, shielding her from the falling liquid. She looked at him, a curious look coming over her brown eyes, but before she could ask anything, he spoke.
"You should not stand out here if sad memories come to mind," he told her. "The rain may bring you happiness, but if it brings you sadness as well, it may not be good for you." She blinked, keeping her eyes on him. "You should find something that would be better to bring about the happiness that was your homeland and keep away the sadness." He removed his hand from her hood, only for it to be stopped by her own. He glanced at it briefly before looking back at her. "What is it?"
She stared at him for a long moment, her eyes holding something almost foreign to him, before she asked, "Can you help me?"
His brows furrowed.
"What do you mean?" He inquired.
"Can you help me find something else?" She repeated herself. "I don't want to keep thinking of home, and yet I do it anyway. Can you help me find something to...make for forget it all?"
He looked into her eyes for a long moment, realizing that she really had the means, the desire, to forget the life she left behind in order to live the rest of it out in Syria. With that in mind, he felt small smile appear in his lips.
"Of course," he replied. When she returned the smile, he allowed both of their hands to fall, but did not let go of hers. "First, though, let us get out of the rain. The first step to happiness requires a healthy lifestyle."
She giggled and shook her head. It was her smile that gave him a bit of reassurance; she would be fine on this dreary, rainy day.