Hey guys! Let me start off by saying that I'm sorry that it's been so long since the last chapter! As you all know though, school can get pretty nasty… So, enjoy!

Living in the Sanctuary wasn't hard. After a few days, I fell back into the comforting and orderly pattern of living in a guild… Eat, train, sleep. I hardly saw the other Dark Brotherhood members, only a few here and there when I woke up early. I saw Vicente the most often, as he was restricted to the hall for at least twelve hours a day.

The odd voice continued to speak inside my head and was gaining power day by day, much to my displeasure. It had an eerie, scratchy quality that I had heard from no human's lips—not quite masculine, not quite feminine—so I knew that I could not have been imagining it. It often warned me to "Kill Leonelle… Kill!" but I ignored it as best I could. The voice frightened me, and as with anything unpleasant, I tried to push it to the edge of my subconscious. It had a chilling quality to it; if I was a more fragile girl, it would send shivers down my spine.

Even though I was in an assassin's guild, I was hearing voices, and I would soon be sent to kill someone, I dreamt only of Lucien. Not the horrific kind like the one I had had in the forest, but sweet dreams of talking and laughing. I still kept his jacket under my pillow every night.

One day after archery training, Leonelle approached me. Her eyes glinted in the dim lighting of the sanctuary, not at all similar to the cheerful twinkling in Lucien's eyes by the fire. With her sharpened nails added to the picture, Leonelle looked like a ferocious predator ready to pounce. She hadn't been mean to me during my time in the Dark Brotherhood, but she struck me as the type of person that Lucien had warned me to watch out for—someone who kills for fun.

"Quindi, this came for you," Leonelle said, handing me a roll of parchment. "It's magically sealed, so don't worry, I didn't read it."

"Thanks." I took the scroll from her, and began to walk away. Even though she said something perfectly nice, something in her tone suggested a deeper emotion at play, whether hatred, vanity, or what I didn't know.

"Aren't you going to read it?" she asked.

"Yes… I'm going to right now." I didn't want anyone near me when I read the letter; if it was specially sealed, it was obviously meant for my eyes only. I heard her harrumph as I exited the room, and almost chuckled under my breath. I rushed to my quarters, and untied the ribbon around the roll, tucking this into my pocket. I wondered how, if it was magically sealed, I would be able to open it. I started to unfurl it, but I felt resistance when I tried to get it more than a fourth of the way open. Suddenly, the following words appeared on the edge of the parchment:

What is my middle name?

I grabbed the quill off of my desk, and quickly scrawled, "Arthur." I knew that it would be from Lucien, and as I suspected, the rest of the note unrolled onto my desk. It read:

Quindi,

Follow the directions on your map that I gave you. I need to see you for a special assignment. Please come to my abode as soon as possible.

-Lucien

I grinned at his use of the word "abode," and quickly finished reading the note.

P.S. Write when you think you can come on the bottom of the page, as it too is enchanted."

I was more than eager to see him again, though it was only about a week and a half since he had left. I bit my lip for a moment, then wrote in my neatest handwriting, "Tonight."

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"Going somewhere?" Vicente asked from the shadows of the living quarters. The Dark Brotherhood members' sudden appearances no longer bothered me, so I calmly met his gaze.

"Yes… I'm not sure when I'll be back. I don't know if I'm allowed to tell anyone of where I'm going…" I shoved a few pairs of clothes into my pack just in case.

"I won't pry; the Brotherhood is full of secrets," he replied. That's what I loved about Vicente. He was always so thoughtful and kind.

"Thank you, that's sweet," I said. He handed me my pillow, and then the jacket underneath. I only took the first object.

"No thanks, I can up you one on that front." I broke out in a smile, and he just set the jacket back with a knowing look on his face. I threw my pack over my shoulder and ran out the door, pausing only to say, "Catch you later."

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I decided that stealing a horse would be useless, as it couldn't very well ride at night. I had a long walk ahead of me. The feeling of elation that I could see Lucien again swelled inside me, and when I checked my map, I found that I was nearly half way there. Thoughts of him kept me occupied for most of the walk to the fort. A slight sensation of anxiety was building, but I pushed it down by thinking that if he didn't want to see me, he wouldn't have written to me.

I held the glass lantern out in front of me as I followed the winding path through the woods. The light threw long, skeletal-looking shadows onto the forest floor, and the moon helped to light my way as well. Every once in a while, I could hear the lone cry of a wolf, or the rustling of leaves kicked up by the slight breeze.

Soon, I could see the outline of the crumbling fort silhouetted by the moonlight. My pace quickened, as well as my heartbeat.

I picked along the route around the fort, just as Lucien had told me to do. Soon, I came to a huge boulder leaning against the side of the fort. With a quick shove, I was able to get all of my belongings through the opening. It was a little snug with the pack, but I pulled myself through, and into the hollowed out rock. The light from my lantern instantly lit up the whole place, and I located the trap door on the floor.

"Well, here goes." I said to myself, pulling open the door with some effort. It popped open, almost causing me to drop my lantern. I knelt next to the opening, and called, "Lucien?"

"Quindi, you're here!" he said. I could see a black shape move to stand below the ladder, but it was too dark to make out a face. "Toss your things down, I'll catch them."

"Okay, get ready!" I heard him chuckle, and I threw him my quiver of arrows and bow first. After my pack went down, I decided not to throw my lantern, and began to climb down the ladder. When I was about eight feet up, I passed him the lantern.

"Can you catch me?" I asked, laughing.

"Try me."

I fell backwards off of the ladder with just a moment of freefall before I was safe and sound in Lucien's arms.

"Thank you," I said politely. He held me with two hands: one behind my back and one under my knees. Caught here in his arms, I could get the first good look at him that I'd had for almost two weeks. My breath almost caught in my throat as he smiled. His hair was just as I remembered, if only more groomed. Lucien's eyes were the deep honey color of amber, and I had a overwhelming urge to touch his face. I kept one hand on my lap, and tucked one around his neck. "I'm not heavy?" I said after a moment.

"Nope. Light as a feather." Even as he said this he was gently setting me on the ground. From here, I could finally embrace him. I threw my arms around him, and he pulled me closer.

"I've missed you," Lucien murmured.

"I've missed you too." We held each other for a long while, then we pulled back slightly. Suddenly, I remembered where we were.

"You know, Lucien…" I began, grinning. "I don't see any skeletons."

Again, I apologize for the absolute short-ness of this chapter! But I've been very, very swamped lately. Please review! Also, I know some people have been subscribing, but not leaving any comments. As much as I love a fan base, I love comments even more! They make my day, and might actually get me to get a new chapter up faster. So please review…

-fracture-girl