Author's Note: Hey guys. Here's another chapter. Please, please, please review! Reviews are my caffeine and inspiration.
Chapter 9: Training
They'd been in the safe house for a few days and Mike noticed that Ginny and Micky were both actually happy. He'd expected Micky to be mad for at least a week or more, but he was happy. The morning after they'd arrived, Micky and Ginny had stayed in her room for quite some time until Rose reminded them that Ginny needed to eat. Mike guessed from the way they looked at each other and how close they were what they'd done and while he thought maybe it was too soon, they both seemed really happy. So Mike left it alone. He also knew Micky would never do anything to hurt Ginny. The safe house had enough food and supplies to last a week, including some clothes that fit them fairly well except for Davy, who had to roll up pants to keep from tripping. They knew they'd have to go shopping soon, but hadn't worked the dynamics out yet. The four Assassins had spent time in the basement trying to strengthen their muscles and skills. Piper had started teaching Peter some first aid techniques and he was catching on quickly. Davy had tried to work on keeping things organized since he felt he didn't have much else to do. He'd make sure Ginny ate and the kitchen was cleaned after every meal.
After breakfast on the third day, Mike went searching for Rose. She'd barely eaten anything before excusing herself. She hadn't eaten much at all lately. Mike looked in the basement first. Sure enough, she was there. The basement walls and floor were lined with mats that offered protection and there was a rack of weights in the corner, a punching bag hanging from the ceiling and another rack of weapons in the other corner. Tucked away along a side wall were some benches and training dummies; little plastic man shaped dolls that were set up to attack. Rose was working on the punching bag hanging from the ceiling. He stood there for a moment watching her punch the bag repeatedly. She was wearing a small, tight tank top and shorts. Her hair was up in a ponytail. She was beautiful, even though she was covered in sweat. She grunted with each strike and the muscles in her arms were firm and well shaped.
"Hey," Mike said when she took a break to drink from a water bottle.
"What are you doing here?" she asked.
"I came to talk to you," Mike said.
"Can we do this later?" Rose asked.
"Look, I know you're upset," Mike said. "I'm sorry."
"Why are you sorry?" Rose asked.
"Cause I've been mad at you," Mike said. "I shouldn't have been. I know what you did wasn't easy."
"Not exactly," Rose agreed.
"You want to talk about it?" Mike asked.
"About what exactly?" Rose asked going back to punching the bag. "About how I lied to the people I care about? About how I pushed you all away from me to keep you safe? About how all of that was for nothing?"
"It wasn't for nothing."
"Wasn't it?" She landed an angry hit to the bag that nearly pulled it from its hook. Mike moved to hold the bag firmly for her. "You guys got pulled back into this anyway. Micky and your friend both got shot."
"Micky barely got hit and Peter got hurt because we are friends with them. We can't escape who we are. Besides that, you had to do what you did. You were doing what was best. Protecting us. Micky, me, your mother and Ginny. If you hadn't lied to us, he'd have killed us."
"You don't know that." Rose landed one good punch before moving over to one of the benches. She looked down at the ground and cried a little. "I keep thinking...maybe if I'd said something to her...maybe she'd still be alive."
"Rose, you can't think that way," Mike said softly kneeling down and taking her hands in his. "You can't allow your mind to be filled with what ifs and maybes. If you do, it'll destroy you. There's nothing you can do now except keep fighting. It's what she would want."
"Of course I'll keep fighting. But if I'd said something back then…"
"Rose, you have to listen to me. They shared a bed together. He could have easily killed her."
"She wouldn't have shared a bed with him if she knew."
"Rose, stop. You can not do this. You can't think about what may have been. It'll just destroy you. You don't know that he wouldn't have found some other way to kill her. To kill me or Micky. You made a choice to protect us despite what it meant for you. No one should ever have to make a choice like that."
"I just miss her so much," Rose cried burying her head in his shoulder. Rose rarely cried like this. She was always strong. She got emotional when she needed to, but she always kept a level head when it was needed. She'd probably been holding this all in for years, prioritizing finding Robert over grieving her mother and dealing with what had been done to her.
"I know," Mike said softly and wrapped his arms around her trying his best to comfort her. "We all do. She was an amazing woman and I know she'd be proud of what you're doing. You've put everyone else's welfare first for so long, though. You know you don't have to do that with me. You can talk to me."
"No, I can't," she said shaking her head. "I don't want those images in your head."
"They're already in there. Ever since you told me what happened, I've been imagining dozens of different scenarios. I can't help it."
"Mike…" she started but trailed off.
"You don't have to shoulder any of this alone. You aren't alone. I love you. And that means shouldering some of the burden. Please talk to me. Please let me help you." Rose sat there quietly for a minute. He could tell she was thinking. She wanted to talk to him, but she didn't want him to be in any pain. He respected that, but he'd tried to convey that he was already in pain.
"I always knew something was wrong with him," Rose said finally, a tear falling down her cheek. "I couldn't explain it and no one would believe me. I was just the step-kid who didn't want anyone to replace her dad. But I just knew…"
"I know," Mike said.
"I finally got up the courage to find proof," Rose said. "He was supposed to be gone...he was supposed to be on a mission to kill a Templar blackmailing a foreign diplomat. So I picked the lock on his office. I know no one was supposed to go in there, but I had to find something. I was stupid…"
"No, you weren't."
"I forgot to listen. I didn't hear him come in. He grabbed me from behind and wrapped his arm around my throat. I couldn't breathe and the room started spinning. He pushed me down and I hit my head on the wall. He asked what I was doing and I told him. I said I knew he wasn't who he said he was. He laughed and called me a stupid slut."
"You know that's not true, right?"
"I know. He told me I needed to mind my own business. He knew I was sneaking away with you and he actually smiled. He said I should keep doing that because that was a woman's place. A woman's only purpose is to satisfy a man's carnal relations. And that I must have been good in bed because there was no other reason for you to keep me around."
"That's a bunch of bullshit."
"I know. I told him he was wrong. I called him a fucking bastard and told him to rot in hell. He got really mad and kicked my face. I couldn't see anything and the next thing I knew he was pinning me to the ground and ripping off my clothes. I tried to fight, but he was too strong. I tried to scream, but he hit me again. He told me he'd kill me if I screamed. He said he needed to teach me a woman's purpose….then he raped me." Rose looked at her hands the entire time, but Mike could see tears falling from her face. Her voice trailed off and her last words were barely a whisper.
"Rose, I'm so sorry," Mike said softly. "He's wrong. None of what he said is even close to being true."
"When he was finished, he wrapped his hands around my throat and laughed in my ear. I can still feel his breath on my face. He said if I told anyone what he'd done, he'd kill everyone I loved. After that, he came into my room a lot to make sure I still remembered the lesson. After a while I stopped fighting him. He told me to get on my knees and I just did it. He told me to take off my clothes and I did."
"That doesn't change anything. You knew you couldn't overpower him and you knew if you fought too much he'd hurt us."
"I was scared. I didn't know what to do. I'd never seen anyone do anything like that before. I'm still scared. I sleep with a gun under my pillow. I still have nightmares and I can still feel him...I'm an Assassin. I'm from one of the most powerful Assassin families on Earth. And I'm scared." She cried even more now.
"You're human first," Mike said wiping the tears from her cheek and lifting her face to look directly in her eyes. "Humans fear. Assassins fear. It's what makes us fight. We feel that fear and we fight anyway. You didn't fight back then because you knew you couldn't and it would only end up in our deaths. You gave yourself to him because you wanted to keep us safe. That's why I was so mad...he used me to hurt you. You put me, your mother and your brother before your own safety. You'd die for us. You suffered for us. That's why I'm mad. I'd rather have died than let you go through any of that. But you made the honorable choice. You put yourself above others. Exactly what we stand for. And now you ARE fighting."
"Not very well. I went to that soap factory to kill him and save Ginny. I messed up. I failed. I miscalculated and I was outnumbered. I fought, but they hit me from behind. I woke up in a cold, damp room with Ginny taking care of my wounds. I was supposed to have saved her."
"You tried. You didn't fail. Things happen. You're here now. You're fighting now. We all are. By choice. Micky and I didn't have to come save you. Piper and Willow didn't have to help us. Davy and Peter could have gone home. We are all fighting now. Right next to you. You can't do this alone. We are all here for you now. We are all with you now. And so is your mother. She's in your heart. I see her in you every day. Her fire, her strength and her heart. I love you, Rose. You put on this face for everyone around you. You pretend like you're so strong that nothing gets to you. That you can handle everything alone. You're strong, yes, but no one is that strong. You don't have to pretend with me. You can cry; you can be afraid. I will still love you. Please don't pretend with me. Let me help you deal with things from now on."
"I knew there was a reason I loved you," Rose smiled. Her face was stained with tears, but Mike didn't care. He used his sleeve to wipe them away and she fell into his arms and just sat there. He held her as tight as he could without hurting her. She continued to cry into his shoulder getting his shirt wet, but he didn't care. He just held her, softly rubbing her back and whispering in her ear how much he loved her. He wanted it to be his breath on her face she remembered. His touch and his comfort. He would allow her to cry as long as she needed.
Davy went down into the basement later that night. Everyone else was already getting ready or in bed. Willow was just finishing up an exercise routine when Davy caught her. For a moment he was stunned by her beauty. She was wiping the back of her neck with a towel and barely noticed him come in.
"You shouldn't sneak up on people," she smiled when she saw him.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to," Davy answered. "I wanted to talk to you."
"Sure," Willow answered.
"I know Mike and Micky don't want to teach me how to fight because they're worried about me getting hurt," Davy started, "but I want to help."
"I understand that," she answered. "But they told me about your attempt at a boxing career."
"Yeah, I know I failed that, but that's because the coaches wanted me to," Davy said. "They threw all the matches to rise my popularity so when they bet on me to lose against the champ, they'd win a lot of money. They never actually taught me how to fight properly cause they didn't want me to know how. But if you could teach me...I might stand a chance."
"I don't know," she said thinking it over. "Some people really aren't cut out to be fighters."
"Just give me a chance," Davy pled. "And if you don't think I can do it, you can stop."
"Are you sure?" she asked. "It's going to be a lot of hard work."
"Yes, but I don't want Micky and Mike to know yet," Davy said. "I want to wait to tell them until you think I'm good enough to show them I can do this."
"Alright, show me what you can do."
"Thank you."
"I'm not making any promises yet. I want to see what you can do first."
"That's fine." Davy smiled as Willow motioned for him to move to the punching bag. Davy made a fist and landed a couple blows to the bag. It hurt his hands, but he tried to push the pain to the back of his mind. He thought about what this meant. He remembered the pain on his friends faces and he thought about what Ginny and Rose had gone through. Peter's words echoed through his mind, too. Encouraging him to fight harder. These men were monsters.
"You're letting your anger control your movements," Willow said. "Let your anger guide your strength and power, but don't let it control your movements."
"How can you tell?" Davy asked.
"It's clearly visible in your form."
"Oh, so how do I do that?" Davy asked slightly confused.
"Focus on what you're doing. Don't let the anger up to the surface. Think about the execution of your moves. In a real fight, you'd be focusing on how you're going to react to an opponent."
"Ok." Davy tried again, trying to focus on the motions he was making. He'd only thrown in a couple more blows when Willow stopped him.
"Your feet are too far apart. Here, like this." Willow stepped in front of him and put her hands on his shoulders. She repositioned his arms and legs carefully until she was satisfied. He was overcome again by her beauty and grace, but forced himself to focus on the task at hand. They spent half an hour down in the basement before Willow told him they should call it a night.
"You aren't half bad," Willow smiled. "You got it in you, I think. A little practice and some guidance and you could actually learn how to fight. You need to work on those muscles, too."
"So you'll help me?" Davy asked hopefully.
"Yes," Willow answered. "But you have to know it's not going to be easy. There's going to be a lot of pain and a lot of work. Are you ok with that?"
"Yes. I need to help you guys. I need to do this."
"Good. Meet me down here tomorrow night when everyone has gone to bed. We'll work on your form some more."
