February 26th, 1212
Diana asks:
"Dear beloved Altair,
Have you heard of Yaoi? You didn't? of course you haven't! If you haven't, Altair, you might want to look at some pictures of you and Malik…and fanfiction stories about you and Malik. After you seem them all, please tell me about your reaction?"
Kallios asks:
"Dear Altair,
I can only assume that because your reply-letters and questions are being posted publicly on the internet then you know about computer and such, and have maybe…MAYBE gone online and seen what your fans have written about you. If so, have you discovered what is called "slash" or "yaoi" and what is your reaction to it? I apologize if I am treading on what is a sensitive subject between you and Malik."
Jadeah asks:
"Altair, I'm sure you've been online plenty, so I'm wondering what your opinion is on all these pairings people have stuck you in. Seriously, it'd be nice to know."
Someone I Cannot Remember The Name Of asks:
"Dear Altair,
What's the relationship between you and Malik? Are you a couple or just two guys?"
My disturbingly devoted and curious followers,
For the past month, my editor and I have been receiving letters filled with questions directed at my personal recollections and me. According to her, at least half of them have concerned Malik Al Sayf, my closest advisor and friend. Many of these messages were filtered off into a separate area, but after a burst of four at once I have taken the situation into my own hands.
It has been made known to me that many people consider Malik and myself to be in a romantic relationship. With much trepidation, I searched a website known as 'Deviant Art' for paintings representing this belief. It is…amusing to see what scenarios our followers have concocted between the two of us (especially relating to Malik's handicap).
However there were and are certainly images that perturbed me. The fact that others denote time and effort into creating these pictures, pictures that dictate my very private affairs, is quite troubling. In many I am shown touching my friend inappropriately, and in far more we are seen undressed. I am glad that I have been made aware of these paintings, but I find myself wishing violently that such things should have been unnecessary.
To the inventors of these images: I have a very special message for you. Please, for the love of all things dear, listen close.
My name is Altair ibn La Ahad. I am forty-seven years old.
Nineteen years ago, I married a beautiful woman named Maria Thorpe. We have two children, Darim and Sef. They are seventeen and fifteen years old.
I am currently the leader of the Assassin Brotherhood, and I am situated in the mountain-fortress of Masyaf. Since directing the Order is a strenuous and difficult task, I have appointed a man named Malik Al Sayf to aid me. Malik and I share a complicated history, but I trust no Assassin like him because of it. He has always guided me, always tried to do what is best for me even if I did not listen. Though I have suggested many times that he find a companion, Malik desires to remain alone. It is his choice, and I respect him enough to accept that.
While Malik is my right-hand man, he is also my friend. I am certain I have made this clear. There is no romance between us; such a notion is ridiculous and fantastic. We are both male.
You still do not comprehend, do you?
The following has become my understanding based on my study of the Apple: love is not a required part of one's life. Love is a reaction to thousands and thousands of years of survival tactics. The human race has existed for far longer than I could ever know, and to be sure that it continues that way, it must reproduce. Scientifically, reproduction occurs when a male excites a female. This activity signals the organ within the female body that forms a child, thus contributing to the species as a whole. The concept of 'love' only makes this basic need into a silly ritual that sits pleasantly in our minds and eases our consciousness.
Now if a male were to excite another male, no child would be produced. The species would not be preserved, meaning that the ritual would have no practical purpose, and therefore a man desiring another man is simply an instance that does not occur. I am aware that some males can experience a genetic deformity that causes them to crave others of their sex, but this is not an ailment I suffer from.
This is the barest reason why Malik and I are not in love. It is the simplest explanation I can offer you. I fear that if I try to clarify using my own feelings for the man, my words would be twisted and morphed.
I sense there is little more left to say. I am mature enough that having viewed these paintings does not scar me. However I was deeply disturbed and I must admit my esteem for humanity has decreased a considerable amount. Merely thinking that somewhere far off, any person could be imagining myself and my closest friend kissing triggers an ache in my head.
Perhaps I have offended you, my valued followers. Perhaps in your strange little minds, I carry a burning passion for the only person in my life I have deeply wronged. If this is true, then nothing I say can change you. From what I've seen, this misunderstanding is rooted so strongly that no form of reality will ever penetrate it. And if that is the case here, then so be it.
This whole business has put a rather bad taste in me.
[xxx]
Honor upon you,
Altair ibn La Ahad