title is a song, All Our Days by Jeff Williams & Casey Lee Williams.
inspired somewhat by the visitors series, but only by making me remember that sense8 AU are a thing, because holy crap i love sense8 and i can't believe i haven't done something like this before now.
this is wildly self indulgent, and will be written as i feel like. it's also wildly au because when you've got seven other people in your head, things don't have to happen exactly as they did.
this first chapter is written somewhat seriously because i wanted it to be, anything after is just random stuff. no really, don't take this work too seriously, it's 100% self indulgent
Altair x Aveline
There was not a single person is Masyaf that doubted that his name rang true, and the Masters would tease Umar about how he must have seen the future to name his son so. Umar told his son that the name given to him was not foresight, but rather a wish.
It was a wish that Altair granted.
He clung to the heights of the towers with a single mindedness that the other children called obsession. The Masters considered it cute, like a kitten that yowled in defiance. Yes, it would grow up to be dangerous, but right now it was simply cute. Altair frowned whenever he heard those words, though he settled when he was assured that he would grow into his claws.
Or talons, as the Masters teased gently. Altair eyed the sky like one day he would grow the wings he needed to soar. The Masters told Umar that even if Altair didn't have the inclination for their line of work- which was a rather large if, considering how he learned- Altair belonged in Masyaf. It was the only place where he could reach for the sky as he did.
That was why Altair respected his father and the other Masters as intently as he did. They did not have the same fervor, the same intensity, but they understood Altair. They may not reach as Altair did, but they stood upon the heights unafraid of it. And with Altair being the only one like himself in Masyaf, he clung to that understanding.
Umar would hold Altair and take him up to the platforms where Assassins did their Leaps of Faith. Altair would watch them intently, arms spread as if they were wings, the wind catching their robes, careless in the way only the truly faithful could. And Umar would murmur promises that Altair would do the same when he was old enough.
One day, Altair climbed one of the towers open to children. It was a place that he was certain was empty at this time of the day. That he needed to be empty. Where the other children wouldn't make their comments about him. His father said that they would grow out of it as the learned more of the world, but that didn't help Altair now.
And yet, there was another person waiting at the landing. The girl looked to be the same age as he was, and near the same height. She was darker skinned than he was, and her hair was black and thick and in long braids that reached down her back. She wore a simple shirt and trousers, but they didn't seem like they would protect her from the harsh summer sun.
"Who are you?" Altair asked bluntly. He did not recognize her, and he knew the faces of all of the other children his age. It was possible that she was a recent addition to Masyaf, but he would have heard of new arrivals. Still, there was something about her that Altair found familiar.
"My name's Aveline," she said, and eyed him right back. She studied him as intently as he studied her.
She turned and stepped right up to the railing that kept clumsy children from falling off the edge, and gripped it tightly in her hands. Aveline leaned out as far as she could past it, nearly bending in half at the waist. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply, taking in the scents that the winds brought up.
Oh. "You are the same as me," Altair said. It was a statement of fact. Aveline looked like she wanted to jump, and that she expected wings that did not exist to catch her. It was an all too familiar expression. "I am Altair. Why are you here?"
Not here, as in the tower. No, Altair knew that Aveline was there because he was. He wondered why she was here, in Masyaf, in this place and time. Altair knew that he was the only one like himself that should be here. Not because of any claim he had on Masyaf, but because Altair was the only one like himself. Even his father and the Masters could only do so much, be so much.
Aveline looked back at him, still leaning over the railing. She looked utterly relaxed there, her hands settled onto the railing instead of gripping it. "I wanted to be outside, and feel the wind, and the sun. It's been storming, and I haven't been allowed outside."
"Masyaf is good for sunshine," Altair said, and made a face. He couldn't imagine not being allowed outside.
"Masyaf? I like it," Aveline said, grinning. She turned back out, and Altair moved closer to mimic her position. "It's not like my home, but it's nice. I've never been so high before."
"You can visit, whenever I come here," Altair said.
He should be the only one there, but Aveline wasn't there truly, was she? He could almost hear the sound of water hitting stone, like what it sounded like at the bottom of the ravine that made a natural barrier for the fortress. Altair felt that if he took a step sideways, he could be where Aveline was.
"Thank you," Aveline said. "You can come and visit me too."
Altair smiled at her. Aveline was the same as him. Maybe not in personality, or skills, or what they considered most important. No, they were the same in the way that they stared out to the sky, reaching, stuck on the ground as they were.
There wings weren't physical, wouldn't carry them like the eagles that flew over Masyaf, but they existed all the same. They had to, if they brought Aveline here to visit, and if they would allow Altair to visit her. And if the two of them could fly, there had to be others like them as well. It was a good thought, that Altair would meet more like himself.
Altair would have to spread the wings he couldn't physically feel, for all that his spirit knew that he had them, and had been trying to tell him so for his entire life. His yearning for places beyond his home meant that he could reach those places.
Altair had to tell his father. Umar loved him, and would be pleased to know that Altair found others like himself. Even if Altair had the feeling that no one would be able to see Aveline.
"Oh!" Aveline said, and snapped her fingers, leaning back so suddenly that Altair startled. He blinked at her, thrown from his train of thought. "I forgot my manners! It's nice to meet you, Altair."
"Yes," Altair agreed. "It is nice to meet you, Aveline.
0o0o0
Jun x Connor
If there was one way that Jun would rise to the ranks of Imperial Concubine, it was her skill as a dancer. Even now it granted her favor with the Emperor, who allowed her to keep her feet unbound, when the other girls already started the process. And so, Jun trained her body as not to give anyone reason to start on her.
She also loved to climb, though that was looked down upon. Sill, the older concubines and women that trained her would turn a blind eye to it- they were the women that knew their places, their worth, and cared not for how the world viewed it at all. And in their own way, encouraged it in all of the girls.
So when Jun climbed the tree that stood outside their balcony, no one said a thing. There, Jun felt that she could dance right past the branches, and keep going. That there was nothing to keep her bound to the castle. That Jun could follow the clouds past beyond the boundaries of the castle and to other lands.
It wasn't something that Jun indulged in often. She was busy with lessons, and training, and her dancing. But she climbed often enough that she considered the small opening at the top of the tree hers. That the view from up there, even though there were better and higher vantage points, hers.
Up this high, she could imagine she saw the world as it truly was. There were shades of color that blanketed everything, giving meaning to things otherwise unseen and unknown. And with that, she knew that she wasn't the only one there.
It was on a climbing day like any other that Jun found herself standing on top of a different tree entirely. The sun shone through the canopy of this new forest, leaving leaf dappled shadows on her skin. It had to be a different place and time, because at this time of day, her tree was entirely in shadow. There was no reason for Jun to stand in sunlight.
"Who are you?" a soft voice asked, curious.
The voice was completely unafraid, no matter that Jun had just appeared out of nothing.
Jun looked to the left and down. There was a boy, maybe her age, looking up at her from his seat on a neighboring branch. He had dark hair cropped at his chin and darker eyes. His clothes were made from skins and leathers, and were finely made. They did appear well worn. Not surprising, if he climbed trees often. And Jun knew he climbed trees often.
"Jun," she said. She stared at him, and he stared at her. Jun had no idea who he was, but she knew him. "And you?"
"Ratonhnhaké:ton," he said. He blinked up at her and tilted his head, like the hunting hawks Jun sometimes managed to see. "Are you a spirit?"
"No," Jun denied, knowing Ratonhnhaké:ton asked for questions sake. He knew she wasn't a spirit. Though the slight confusion as to why she was here, in a tree that wasn't her own, was understandable. Jun certainly was, even if she wasn't scared, and actually quite content to have met Ratonhnhaké:ton. "This could be a waking dream."
"Maybe. I don't think I'd meet you otherwise," Ratonhnhaké:ton said. He looked thoughtful, though he didn't voice anything. Instead, he turned back to look past the tree and to the view.
Jun followed his line of sight, and saw the dip into a valley. "You have a nice tree." It was obvious that this was all Ratonhnhaké:ton. Jun recognized the shape of the trees, and they way they lined the mountains, but it was completely unlike her own home.
"I'm sure you do too, if your own tree brought you to mine," Ratonhnhaké:ton said. That wasn't quite what happened, but Jun understood the simplification. He looked at her again, and watched the way she swayed with the branch. "You dance."
Ratonhnhaké:ton said it like it was fact. Jun didn't bother asking how he knew that. After all, one didn't need to know how to dance to keep balance on a tree branch. Just from this brief meeting, Jun already knew things about Ratonhnhaké:ton that she should be surprised to know.
"Yes. I am lucky that the Emperor decided that my skill was enough to stop my feet from being bound," Jun said.
"That's good," Ratonhnhaké:ton said, blinking. "Though it is not good that you have to bind your feet where you are."
"It is what it is," Jun said, and shrugged. She would never get anywhere if she focused on what she thought was unfair. Not with where she was, right now. Ratonhnhaké:ton knew that, she felt, even as he spoke of it. "I am interested in what your people are like."
"Can you visit me when I am not here?" Ratonhnhaké:ton asked, meaning the tree.
"Yes," Jun said. That felt true. "We were able to meet this first time because of our trees and our thoughts. But that means that there is nothing stopping us from visiting each other anywhere else."
"That's true," Ratonhnhaké:ton agreed. "And I know you, now. It will not be hard to search for you." He smiled at her. It was a small thing, but no less true for it. He smiled with his eyes more than his face. "Either here, or where you are."
Jun nodded, excited at the thought. She thought Ratonhnhaké:ton would like the castle and the surrounding area. She certainly liked it here. And if there were two trees where people perched in them like birds, then there had to be more trees with people. "I look forward to seeing you again."
0o0o0
Ezio x Elise
They did not meet face to face for a long while, but Ezio was aware that he was not alone in his mind for years. It started when his father and Federico first took him by the hand and led him up the ladders to the roof. Ezio would normally be extremely put out at being up before the sun rose, but he knew where they were going. And up there, with the sun starting to rise above the horizon, Ezio saw Florence from above for the first time.
It was breathtaking, the view. Ezio's eyes lit up as he watched the sun start to glint off of the tiled roofs, dew making it sparkle. At the time, he didn't notice the awe that rose parallel to his own, so fixated on his own. Later, he would recognize that he wasn't alone. His father and Federico weren't the only ones there with Ezio.
There was a redheaded girl in the back of Ezio's mind. Every time Ezio did something that he felt large emotion for, whether it be fear, or joy, or even intense boredom, that presence was there. And likewise, he would dream of another noble house, and watch as she lived and learned everything Ezio was learning with his father. And also the sword, which Ezio was somewhat jealous of.
But, they learned together as well. When Ezio had trouble with his work, she would help him figure it out. When she flagged in energy, Ezio lent her his own. They were a pair, the two of them. They shared many things, depending on what either of them needed or wanted.
Ezio considered the nameless girl to be a part of himself, like no one else was. He sometimes thought that the girl was him, in a different life. A step sideways where he was born a girl. And she thought the same, he felt. The idea wasn't uncomfortable. Their hearts were similar. The change in body would be odd, but not awkward.
Ezio was comfortable with the other presence in his life, that came and went, but was always, always constant. He had the feeling that there was more than just his other self, that there were things he was missing, but it was a distant thought. One he only ever thought about when he climbed to the rooftops with Federico. There, Ezio could almost imagine that there were others than just himself and the nameless girl who would enjoy the view.
He first met her face to face when he was eight. He climbed the clocktower on his own for the first time, then. Federico was off doing business with their father, and Ezio was to be apprenticed to a banker. Ezio did not mind it, really he didn't, but he just wanted to be… away, for a while.
It took him some time to climb the clocktower. Ezio was more cautious than he normally would be without someone to keep an eye on him. He did manage it on his own, though, and he stood at the top triumphantly. And like always, he felt her presence arrive, partaking in that feeling as she always did.
"It's a bit tough, isn't it?" a soft voice asked.
Ezio blinked and turned. There he saw a girl, and knew her immediately. There was no way he wouldn't recognize the nameless and faceless presence that had been by his side for as long as he could remember.
She looked at him, and he looked at her. Her hair was a deep shade of red, long and wavy. She had green eyes, and was covered in freckles. She was shorter than he was, though not by much. She wore a dress that hid everything he knew about her. Like the fact that she climbed nearly as much as he did, and was learning the sword.
"It's nice to meet you," Ezio said after a long moment. He was crying, and refused to be ashamed about it. They were happy tears, and she was crying too.
"Yes, it is," she said. She blinked rapidly, and then turned to look over Florence with awe in her eyes. The view never did get old, no matter how many times he climbed. "This is where you are? It's beautiful."
"Your home is beautiful too," Ezio said. Not that she could find places to climb as easily as he did. Her parents kept a stricter eye on her, and she climbed the trees in their courtyard more often than any buildings.
"You will see it properly," she said, and looked back to him. "I am able to visit you like this, so you must be able to visit me."
"Yes," Ezio agreed. Honestly, they both refused to believe otherwise. Face to face, he could tell that their thoughts circled each other. Face to face, he could finally note all their differences and similarities more clearly.
"I am Elise," she said.
"I am Ezio."
They stared at each other as something clicked into place. They always were able to distinguish themselves from the other, even when they cared not to. Yet, having a name to the presence, and a face…
Well. Ezio still cried.
He didn't know who pulled who into the hug first, but there they were. And then they were both laughing with glee on top of the clocktower, arms wound around each other. There was an echo of touch, as they felt each other hugging themselves, but it felt wonderful.
"Oh, it is so incredible to meet you," Elise said, face pressed into Ezio's shoulder. Her voice should have been muffled, but he heard her clearly. "I told my mother about you, but I don't think she believes me. Not really."
"I told Federico, and he believes me, but I don't think he understands," Ezio said. And he loved his brother for it, that he took it at face value. That Federico believed Ezio when he told him that there was another person in his head. But still, his brother didn't understand.
"Do you think we can meet each other's family?" Elise asked. She pulled away and grabbed his hands.
Ezio turned his hands in hers, studying what he normally couldn't. Elise had similar climbing calluses like Ezio did. She also had the ones that came from learning how to use the sword. "Not like we are meeting each other now."
That felt true. Elise was part of Ezio. They could see the difference between each other, but his family would only see Ezio. He figured that the opposite was true as well. Maybe, if they could learn to see the differences in personality?
"We can figure it out," Elise promised.
"Yes. I know we can," Ezio echoed.
0o0o0
Evie x Desmond
There were other people in Evie's head. She knew this since she was capable of understanding the idea. Jacob was one of those people, though not in the same way. She and Jacob didn't exist in each other's mind the same way that the others did.
Evie didn't know any differently, or think it was different. It was all she knew, and since no one else taught her differently, she assumed that no one else wasn't alone in their head.
In fact, it was probably why people often acted one way and thought another, and mixed things up. Evie had to be careful not to blurt out something when one of her other selves thought something particularly intensely. And that lined up with how Evie saw other people act.
Jacob told her that he didn't have people in his head like she did, but Evie didn't really believe him. She supposed that his own thoughts were so loud that anyone else's edged in seamlessly, if not outright ignored. Evie just happened to be a thinker, and she knew when a thought was not her own.
Evie didn't realize that having people in her head wasn't normal until she met Desmond face to face. Not that she knew his name until later.
She liked Desmond. He was as curious as she, and thought just as much as she did, even if he was less vocal about it. He talked a lot when he was emotional, and his rambling would also infect his thoughts, leaving an almost clear running commentary in the back of Evie's mind. He reached out to the others when he needed comfort without shame, and Evie did her best to help. She was an older sibling already, and Desmond seemed like he needed one badly.
It was a bad day, the day she finally met him. Evie and Jacob had finished training with their father for the day. It was a long day made longer by the fact that Evie could feel the rising anger, fear, and shame coming from Desmond.
The negativity was a recent development. Desmond enjoyed his training. She often had dreams of the others, and Desmond often gave her memories of what he did during the day. But then, shame started creeping in. It was so gradual that Evie didn't notice until it burned at her.
"Evie?" Jacob asked, and pressed his shoulder to hers.
"Yes?"
"Are you okay? You've been frowning," Jacob said, "And not your 'Jacob is annoying and lazy' frown, either. This is your 'something is actually wrong' frown."
Evie sighed. "One of the people in my head- the one I said was our younger brother- is in trouble. He's being trained as an Assassin like we are, but he's… it's like he's being bullied. By the people that are supposed to be training him."
Jacob frowned. They both knew that their father and the other Assassins were nowhere near as harsh as they could be, as teachers go. They were well loved and well protected, and injuries they gained while training were superficial, and tended to immediately afterwards. They both knew this, even if neither bothered to think about it.
"That's no good, is it? Does he not have anyone there with him?" Jacob asked. He looked and sounded lost, and Evie did not blame him. Neither of them had been alone a day in their life. Not having anyone at all was unthinkable.
"No. It's why he's our brother, even if he's far away," Evie said. Jacob nodded in agreement. When Evie told him that months ago, he accepted it immediately. Jacob accepted most everything Evie said about the other people in her head.
"Then you have to go and check on him, don't you?" Jacob said.
"I don't know how," Evie said, frowning. She was aware of them, and all of their thoughts and feelings were there, in the back of her head. But she never visited them. "...though, the other twins did manage, recently."
Evie didn't think that those two were actually twins, not like Evie and Jacob. But they were so close they might as well be. Evie had to focus on them properly to separate them most of the time. It did become easier when they met, though. It was like seeing each other face to face for the first time helped them realize that they were two different people.
Or, as different as any group of people that shared their minds did, anyway.
"There you go. It's possible, so you got to help," Jacob said, nodding.
Evie bit her lip. That sounded good. But. "What about you?" she asked. Jacob would be left her alone, and she didn't want that, either.
Jacob snorted. "Evie, not to sound mean or anything, but it's all in your head. Your body isn't going anywhere, so someone has to protect you. Tell me about it when you get back, and it's fine."
Evie blinked, surprised at his logic. It was true, she felt. Not the whole truth, maybe, but… Nothing is true. Everything is permitted. "Okay. Thank you, Jacob," Evie said, and hugged him.
"It's fine," Jacob said, and then pushed her away. Gently, for him. He grinned at her. "Now, go save our baby brother, yeah?"
"Yes," Evie agreed.
She closed her eyes and reached for Desmond. The others in her head were hers, like she was theirs, but Desmond was family in a way that went beyond that. He was her brother by choice. And he needed help. And if Evie was good at one thing, it was looking out for her own.
Evie didn't realize she actually went anywhere until she heard- no, not heard, felt someone crying nearby. Evie opened her eyes and looked around.
It was a bedroom. There were some odd furnishings she didn't recognize. There was a weird timepiece on the dresser. The posters on the wall were oddly made, flat and glossy in a way most paint wasn't. But none of it held her attention.
No, it was the boy that hid in the small space between the bedframe and the desk. Evie wouldn't have seen him if she couldn't feel him as well. He hid well in the shadows.
"Hello," Evie greeted softly. She knelt in front of him, hands visible. "It's alright. I'm here now."
Dark eyes stared at her. He lifted a hand to rub at his tears.
Silent. He was so silent. Even Evie's father made noise when he wasn't training them. He said that it was polite for Assassins to make noise when not working, because they either worked with other Assassins that would attack on reflex, or civilians, who would startle badly if they were snuck up on. So why did this child learn to be so quiet when he was sad? He didn't even sniffle.
"Who are you?" he asked after staring at her for a long moment.
Evie blinked, thrown by the idea that he didn't know who she was on sight. Evie may not know their names, or their faces, but she knew who they were. If Evie ever met them face to face, she would recognize them immediately.
"I'm Evie, one of the people in your head," she said instead. Maybe he ignored the feeling of meeting someone he knew while he cried. Jacob was proof that strong emotions made it easy to ignore obvious things sometimes. "I was worried about you, so I came to make sure that you were okay."
"In my head?" he repeated. He uncurled slightly from the ball he was in to sit up straighter. He stared at her, something like recognition in his eyes. "My mom and dad said you're not real."
Evie frowned at that. Was that why he was being bullied? Because no one believed him about them? No, it couldn't be, not really. Maybe it was part of it, but there was something else too. "I'm as real as you are," she promised, "though I don't think anyone else can see us."
He stared at her as if judging her sincerity. Then he nodded. "Okay. Nice to meet you, Evie. I'm Desmond."
"Desmond," Evie repeated. It was a good name. She had a name to give Jacob now, too. He'd be pleased to learn it.
Desmond climbed out from his hiding place. It wasn't much of one, not if Desmond was being trained by Assassins, but that didn't mean much. Any Assassin worth their blades knew when and when not to push, and to leave hiding places be.
The thing, though, was that Evie was certain that the Assassins training Desmond wouldn't let him have even that. Desmond might be punished, and already was being punished, if his silent crying was indication. You didn't learn to be silent like that on your own. And Desmond shouldn't have to deal with that.
Evie couldn't help herself. She pulled Desmond into a hug. He startled and stiffened, as if he was unused to being hugged. That was a shame. Everyone could use hugs. Still, despite his hesitance, Desmond hugged her back hard. It was a good start.
0o0
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