I roused early, for I had gone to bed earlier than I had before. The breeze of the morning whistled through my window. Stars were fading slowly from the deep blue sky that many regarded as a black hole filled with punctured holes from a sewing needle; a shooting star was that of the needle pulling a thread across the cloth of the sky. The thought comforted me when I thought of the endless sky as that.

The soft breaths and coos of dreams lifted from my floor by two girls who had seemingly appeared from nowhere. Nahid was most likely at the fortress, communing with the women of the garden and her brothers. The light from the sun had not shown itself and I was glad of that. I brushed my hair quickly and dressed into my clothes, my hijab wrapped around my waist as I got up, the knot secured close to my hip.

Musnah was out like an Assassin done with a mission. Yet Sabah wearily opened her eyes to my form moving, she barely moved. Yet her eyes watched like a hawk, her mouth opening slightly as I placed worn leather shoes on my feet.

"Where are you going?"

I softly got up from my bed and walked around with quiet steps to the door.

"To seek Darim."

My back leaned against the cool stone as the light slowly peeked over the canyons of Masyaf. The sand felt soft and cool against my legs and bottom. My ears heard all the fine tunes of birds beginning to sing and somewhere a bleat of a goat echoed in the hills. I kept them tuned for hoof beats hitting sandstone or even the soft whooshing of sand collapsing against the weight of a leg. I heard nothing for a good twenty minutes, while the sun slowly dribbled over the canyon walls.

The birds began to slightly quiet, and the wind didn't even hesitate to throw upon a gust of wind around me. And the wind smelled of horse and leather. I perked up at this smell, my eyes darting wildly to look for Darim and his bay mare. I didn't spot them for a while, and when I did, his mare was walking fast, most likely seeing the way to Maysaf, her breaths came out as wisps of white. I stood quite suddenly when I caught his chin under the hood. He spurred his mare a little faster, and before I knew it, a few small specks of sand hit my cheeks. He swiftly dismounted and pulled down his hood. My mouth erupted into a smile, and his own mirrored.

"I take it you survived?" I remarked softly, parts of the sun blaring into my eyes, causing a mirage of tiny flashing colors to annoy my eyesight.

"No, not at all. I was killed savagely by my target within a bedroom that was inlayed with…"

I screwed my face up, hitting his arm. "You just ruined your welcome, and with talk about your own death no less."

He grinned and spit into the wind, his hand holding tightly to the reins of the anxious mare. His hand brushed against his hair and I kept smiling at his face. It was good to see him, most of his missions didn't take this long.

"Well, I'm sorry my death causes you such pain. I thought that coming here upon my spectral horse that at least I would allow you closure upon my death, but then again, I could have stayed plastered against the…"

I softly hit his arm again, grinning. "You're acting more like Sef, one would think he was influencing you while you were away!"

He began walking, and I followed his steps through the sand. He chuckle resonating through the air like a string instrument being plucked. The winds carrying his voice away like a ghost wailing into a dead silence.

"Well then!" I spoke boldly, startling Darim out of his thoughts for a moment. "Tell me of your mission, and none of that death speak do you hear?!"

Darim laughed again, hearty and loud. "You sound like my Mother more and more each day!" And with that, he began talk of his mission. He spoke all the way towards Maysaf of how the sun shined upon the guards armor, the glittering of their blades when they shifted in the sunlight. The smell of iron when a woman screamed from the target being assassinated correctly. It was all very surreal, and the smell of leather and horse sweat brought me even closer to the arrays of smells and sights Darim told me. I knew he was glossing it over, telling me everything as if I had cloth over my eyes. But I didn't mind, it was beautiful, so very beautiful, and never had I wished I could see it more than I did now.

Darim led me to the stables, where Latif seemed to sigh in relief, her snorts turned to soft chimes of her skin rubbing together in her nostrils. Small nickers being placed from her mouth when I pulled an apple from my various layers of cloth, allowing her front teeth to cut it into small pieces. Darim returned with a smile, his eyes following my hand that spoiled his mare.

It was a quiet affair to the fortress, were we reveled in our own thoughts. I knew only my own, not Darims. I only took my thoughts seriously when I was tucked away by the bookcases from the Grand Master while Darim reported.

The soft cackle of a bird drifted through the window, most likely that of a messenger pigeon. Flutters of light sprayed across my cheeks as the clouds swayed to and fro with the breeze. I hadn't seen Mother or Father since yesterday. Surely I should have seen Father, for I left at the time before the sun had risen. I remember being young, still cradled by my Mother with a nightmare when he left in the morning from their bed. Mother was always one to sleep in though. Aquil slept in too, yet Imad I hadn't seen. Perhaps he was with Father then? Seeing as the girls were around to visit Maysaf.

I cursed softly under my breath from the reality that I would get a scolding when I returned home. But if I didn't return home, there was no scolding! Besides.. the words Mother uttered to me yesterday scared me to the bone. Me? Married to Darim? That would never happen! We're best friends, not some pair of dumbstruck lovers tangled in reddened sheets.

My cheeks flushed horrible, and I pulled my face into my knees, nearly spluttering from the thoughts that filtered through my brain. Brazen acts of meeting an Assassin in the corridors like a maid, or perhaps… even that of a woman from the garden. Oh sweet Allah. Honestly, the thoughts of those from the Garden didn't hit me like before. Before, they just pleasured the men, no.. carnal desires were thought of. I slapped my hands upon my cheeks, flushed beyond compare. Perhaps if I went to the library and looked at the words and pictures of a flower book? That would certainly lose those thoughts quickly, yet what of Darim, I promised I would be with him today.

A shuffle of feet caused my thoughts to fall away, but it was not Darim like I hoped.

Nahid scooted near me and sat down, her hair brushed cleanly into a braid behind her head. Her hijab covered only her neck as it was pulled down after she had sat down next to me. I raised a brow at her, and she did the same.

"Aren't you supposed to be with my Mother and the other women?"

Nahid raised her head and stretched out her legs, her nose was pointed towards the air.

"Your Father told me a bastard was not fair to be that of a wife."

"Ahh." I responded quietly. "Sorry."

She furrowed her brow and tilted her head in confusion. "It's not your fault, you are not your father."

I sighed softly then, and pulled my legs closer to my breasts. "I'm sure I influenced him slightly if not more."

Nahid pulled herself up, seemingly acting as if this conversation was not of use to her anymore, her mouth opened, yet when she was about to speak, Darim rounded the corner a grin on his face. But it only fell when he saw Nahid, her cheeks dusting to red flowers.

"Hakim? Who is this?"

Nahid scrambled and bowed her head. "Nahid, daughter from the garden. But I must be away now." And she was off like a bullet. I had never seen a person who acted like she run so fast. It left us confused, and with that, I stood, allowing Darim to pull me towards the archery range.

I stood outside, sweat running down my brow as I held a joint locked position, a bow poised in front of me. I shook a little, feeling nervous at shooting a bow in front of Darim and Sef who was throwing knives at a target in a lazy fashion, I did not see Sef until a few minutes ago, since it seemed Darim had told him of his plan to teach me the ways of the bow, obviously, he wasn't that concentrated upon watching me.

"Move your left foot over a small bit." Darim made a small sigh. "That was your right foot Hakim, other foot."

"And what do you know of shooting a bow?" I turned around quickly, and nervously, losing my entire stance. I scolded myself and cursed myself in the name of Allah when losing such feet patterns for useless things as arguing.

Sef snorted and retrieved his knives while I was busy fretting. His steps were loud for an assassin, but still they were muted and quiet.

"I've been training with bows since I was seven, I would think I would know just about everything there is about them."

I snorted as he approached me and helped my stance, his body maneuvering around mine as he moved my legs and hands to their correct positions, with a wide smile of mirth on his face also. He was just a little bit too close to my liking. It reminded me of those thoughts I had earlier, I rolled my eyes at Darim, trying to push such thoughts from my mind... I blew a burst of air out of my mouth, trying to get my hair out of the way. Darim quickly pulled it away from my face and behind my neck.

"No, distractions…" He walked around me, examining my posture and position. Now that made me lose my focus completely, utterly, in a blushing mess of red. "It seems that you are good, now just to-"

I let go of my arrow immediately and Darim jumped out of the way, while Sef dogged behind the target full of knife holes. I lowered the bow that was obviously Darims, since he had dug it out from his room before he ever led me towards the archery ground. The end of the bow touched the dirt and he rushed forward to grab it.

"Don't shoot when there's people in front of you! Look! Sef is… Sef is laughing…"

I giggled, hearing Sef's laughing behind his selected knife target, his feet pounding the ground and he rolled around in laughter. Darim sounded just deflated from being proven that Sef was indeed not hurt, but enjoying himself. I bended over, touching my hands to my knees as I laughed and laughed, not even bothering to look and see where the arrow landed, when I did finally stop laughing along with Sef, Darim was staring at the targets.

"Well… it's not that bad of a shot." He said with a grin, a chuckle coming from his mouth and raising up towards a full blown laugh.

The arrow was in a target I hadn't even been aiming at. In fact, it was in a target that was completely out of the way.

That was it; I was on the ground, laughing along with the others.

And of the many things I have learned in life, I learned I could not fire a bow.

Hakim and hormones, funny yet awkward to write.

The last part is also for humor, humor is always lovely in a story! Also, although Nahid was not picked for Aquils marriage, she is still going to be very active in this story. Hakim will be seeing her a lot more in the future, so just wait.

I've not a lot to say besides that, but the ball is rolling in the story now; my plot is being developed and nothing's going to stop that stupid thing from rolling.

Have a good day and or night.