I need to remind y'all. The titles for Tincture is a PLAYLIST. As in, song titles, as in, don't just absorb the titles in a vacuum and go 'oh this is x' cause you're absolutely way off the mark. On AO3 I literally post these chapters with videos of the song.
So like the last one, this is more of me fucking around with the way canon changes for a not fic. Also, Andrew sucks pass it on.
Also before you ask why there are big cuts between scenes the answer is this: I didn't wanna write it cause I found it boring. Tincture is supposed to be fun. Just get to the fun bits!
House on Fire by Sia
Desmond woke up to yelling. His flight and fight response kicked because it wasn't just yelling. It was yelling at him in a language he didn't know. He kicked out, a man screamed when Desmond snapped their knee.
More yelling as Desmond tried to get to his feet. The butt of a rifle hit his face and he crumpled. They hit him again for good measure and while he didn't pass out, he wasn't going to be getting up anytime soon.
He groaned as the men, still yelling in a language that was vaguely romantic but what sort Desmond was too disorientated to tell, grabbed him up under his armpits. Two of them, and started to drag him forward. Desmond just breathed and tried to figure out what the hell was going on.
The clearing, which last night had looked empty, was full of tents. There were people, talking, and casting furtive looks at him. He was brought to the other side of the camp to a tall, wooden, poll. Desmond knew what it was but he was too disorientated and he was bleeding from his face from the rifle butt to the face, and couldn't stop them when they threw him against it and bound his hands behind his back around the post. Desmond groaned as he lay there on the ground, his arms twisted into an uncomfortable angle and looked up at three men pointing guns at him, yelling in what sounded like Spanish but could have been any similar language.
With a groan he forced himself to sit up. He was bleeding from his temple, and his lip and forehead and he was going to have two big bruises on his face later from this. At least they were human. Small miracles but a miracle anyway.
"No hab-" Desmond tried, but the words were hard to get out of his mouth, he was still so tired and had just been beaten in the face. His brain wasn't working right. "No hablar," he tried again, hoping they at least understood his stupid Spanish. They continued yelling and Desmond just didn't have the brain fortitude to deal with them.
Then someone, a much calmer someone, approached and got the men to stop yelling. Oh good. Desmond just hung his head trying to not get blood all over his clothes. The calm man crouched in front of him and Desmond looked up. There was recognition in his eyes, but Desmond didn't know him. He was normal looking, if a bit old with brown eyes and perfect hair that was white with a bit of brown streaked in it. Even though he was an old guy he was still pretty good looking and Desmond thought he kinda looked like an older version of him. "Hello, Desmond," they said.
"How you know me?" Desmond asked and sucked blood to spit it off to the side.
The man smiled. "More of you than actually know you," he said.
"Great," Desmond groaned. "Who're you?"
"My name's John," he said nice and kind.
"Well, hello John. Mind telling me why I'm tied to a post after getting the shit beat out of me for no reason?"
"They were just scared. Don't think too badly of them. Let's get you untied."
"Great," Desmond said and someone else came up and cut the rope around his wrists. He stayed on the ground another minute trying to get his wind back and spit a bit of blood out before rolling to his feet. The person who'd cut his bindings was a guy a few years older than him with a nose that had been broken way too many times. He looked kinda like John too. Father and son maybe?
"Let's get you cleaned up, hmm?"
"Sounds great," Desmond said and followed after John to a tent. He handed Desmond a first aid kit that had seen better days. He had some gauze, medical tape, and bandaids to work with. Cool. Not.
Desmond sat in one of the folding chairs in the tent before administering his own first aid. He was glad John didn't offer to help. He wouldn't have taken it. He didn't know this guy and didn't want him touching Desmond. "So, who are you guys? How the fuck do you know me?" Desmond asked once he'd wiped most of the blood off his face.
"We're Assassins," he said. That god Desmond to look up. "Part of what's left of them at least."
"Is this all there is?" Desmond asked.
"All what?" John cocked his head at Desmond.
"All the Assassins left?"
"No."
"Who's the commanding officer?" Desmond asked as he kept pressure on his temple cut. Face cuts bled a lot but weren't usually that bad. His mouth scar was the worst face injury he'd ever gotten.
"They aren't here right now. They'll be arriving tonight though."
"Okay. Can you tell me how to get to Tikal?"
"Tikal? Why do you want to go to Tikal?"
"That's my business," Desmond winced when he pressed against a cut.
"I could. But until the Master and their team get here, you aren't going anywhere."
Desmond lowered the towel slowly, "Is that a threat?" Desmond asked.
"No. It's just very far away and they'll be interested in meeting you. We heard you were dead."
Desmond eyed him, "People say a lot of dumb shit," he said and looked away from John to tape gauze to her face to soak up blood on his temple.
"They do. You're not our prisoner but I'm sure our Master will be more than happy to help you to Tikal."
"Mmm, right. Okay. When are they arriving again?"
"This evening. So just stay out the way today and no one will bother you."
"You sure about that?" Desmond gave him a bit of a glare.
"I will tell the civilians you're safe and shouldn't be harmed," John assured him.
Desmond sucked his teeth a little. "Yeah. Okay. Sure. Why the fuck not? Not like I have anywhere else to go."
John smiled. "Great. That's great to hear. Breakfast is in an hour and lunch is exactly at noon. You're more than welcome to join us."
Desmond was going to say no but instead, he flushed when his stomach announced very loudly that it was hungry. "Yeah. Thanks," he said.
"Now I have some things to do. Just stay out of trouble, kid," he said in such a friendly manner that kinda weirded Desmond the hell out. He smiled at Desmond and then left the tent.
—
Like John said Master showed up in the early evening. Before dinner as the sky was just starting to turn pink and purple. Desmond had spent the day sitting down, trying to make his headache go away. He knew they'd arrived because the camp suddenly swarmed with activity to prepare for their arrival.
Desmond didn't move a fucking inch.
A few off-road vehicles rolled up behind some tents, people got out. Desmond just waited, to see what would happen. He gently touched his face, as he had been all day, and winced like he had every other time. It still hurt. At least he wasn't bleeding anymore.
He was caught up in inspecting his face he didn't realize who was coming up to him until they were, quite literally, right in front of him. He looked up and didn't really recognize the woman. She was in his mid to late fifties maybe with short ash brown hair shot through with more than a little white. She had hazel eyes and a knife scar on the right side of her face but looked better for it. She looked like she'd seen some shit.
"Hello, Des," she said and Desmond rose his brows at her.
"That's a pretty familiar way to refer to someone you've never met," Desmond said, calmly putting his hands on the table. It was weird. Everyone seemed… afraid of her. Well not afraid maybe just wary. The same way people were wary of Altair. Her big arms weren't for show. Now that Desmond thought about it, despite her age she was almost in as good of shape as Desmond was.
She smiled and it unnerved him. There was something familiar about it but he couldn't place why exactly. "I guess I have no one to blame but myself for that," she said and Desmond leaned back when she reached out to touch him. She still grabbed his face to inspect the way his hurt face. "Who did this?"
"One of your trigger-happy goons," Desmond said. He tugged his face out of her grasp. The way she spoke reminded him of Altair when he worried about Desmond.
She looked away and beckoned to someone. An Assassin came over. "Who did this to him?"
"Ah, one of the outsiders," they said. Desmond just watched with curious attention. "We told them not to but he scared them they said."
"I see. Find out which ones. I will speak with them later."
"Yes, Master." They seemed relieved to be able to leave her presence. Was she crazy? Maybe she was unstable? So far she'd been completely pleasant to Desmond and he had no reason to be wary of her other than that she seemed super familiar and it was weirding him out.
She offered his hand to him. "C'mon, let's talk," she said. He ignored his hand but did get to his feet. She beckoned and he followed her into a tent. She sat on a folding chair and motioned for him to do the same. Desmond sat slowly. "I'm sorry my men were less than hospitable to you. It won't happen again."
"Yeah," Desmond said slowly. "So… what is all this? The Assassins? A guy named John told me you're Assassins. This is all that's left?"
She frowned. "We aren't all that is left but we're one of the larger groups of us left."
"And you, who are you?"
"I'm the leader of this group."
"That guy called you the Master. Just a Master?" It was a loaded question and they both knew it. How important was this lady?
"The Assassins are scattered and have difficulty communicating. If you're asking if I'm the Mentor I can tell you I'm the closest thing the Assassins have had to one in many years. The proeathans killed all our leaders first. Same with the Templars. They knew we were there. Apparently, they saw us more of a threat than world governments. So we're more or less leaderless except for those who make themselves into it," she explained. "Is that a satisfactory answer, Des?"
"Yeah." He still couldn't shake the feeling that she was familiar. And she acted like she knew him but he'd never seen her before. "I can't shake the feeling we've met before. But I've never met you before," he said. He couldn't figure it out. "Like a dream or something."
"Heh. Hardly. A nightmare would be more accurate."
"You going to tell me? Or keep me guessing?"
Her lips twitched. "I had hoped you'd recognize me but I guess that was too much to hope. We didn't see each other much. A mistake in a long line of mistakes and I'm sorry for that. But I don't expect forgiveness. You're too much like the rest of us. You don't forgive easily," she sighed and leaned back in the chair. Desmond hadn't relaxed the entire time and was just watching her, alert as always. Something in his brain was screaming at him about who this woman was. It was right there as the memory of a dream or a long forgotten childhood memory. "It's probably best you're sitting." That didn't make Desmond feel any more at ease. He was still high key anxious about hearing who she was. "My name is Kaley Miles. I'm your mother."
Desmond felt like all the had been sucked out of his body. Now he knew why he felt like he knew this woman but couldn't place why. Why she said it was like they'd met in a nightmare. His one good memory of Kaley Miles was her picking him up out of the blood pool Duncan had made when he'd killed himself when he was eight. All other memories were hazy. He recalled seeing her rarely growing up until he ran away. A glimpse of her standing in the hallway. A woman standing in the kitchen. The look of disinterest if she saw him staring in surprise to be reminded he had a mother.
"Fuck off," Desmond growled.
She didn't seem surprised by his remark. "I'd feel the same way," she said. "Like I said, I don't expect your forgiveness. I'm not that stupid. My useless husband would have but not me. He never did know how to handle people like us."
"You think?" Desmond snarled.
"How's the old man hmm?" The question threw him off.
"Uh… what?"
"I don't know his name. Well, I know a name. Who knows if it's real. The asshole."
Desmond answered without thinking. "Altair? He's probably getting murdered by his brother right now."
"Heh. Idiot," she said. Then she smiled at him. "How are you?"
"Why the fuck do you care?"
"Because I've made mistakes in my life and I'm an adult enough to want to try to fix them," she said. "We don't even know each other. I'd like to change that."
"Too little too late, lady," Desmond said meanly.
"In my experience, it's never too late for anything. Especially to make your life work."
"Yeah, how you figure that?"
"Well, murder fixes all sorts of problems someone can have," she smiled a little. "Especially when words don't really cut it."
That surprised him. "You're crazy," he said.
"From what I've heard, so are you," she said. She spoke very calmly and almost gently, in a soft but striking tone. Weirdly it reminded him of Cain in a way. He tried to remember what he knew about his mother. It wasn't a lot. Duncan always said she was sick and when Desmond had asked he said she was sick with sadness. As an adult Desmond realized that that was just depression. Same way Duncan had it. His father barely spoke of her and when he did it was in the past tense like she was dead. It seemed that somewhere in the isolation of her own depression she'd cracked. Desmond knew the feeling. But she wasn't insane, at least not obviously. It was a cold and cruel madness brought on by a life that had been cruel right back.
"Only sometimes," Desmond said slowly. He really didn't know what to make of this woman in front of him.
"I heard the things Andrew would say to you," she said. "And to Duncan. I was too sick to help and for that, I am so sorry. If I had been better none of it would have happened."
"Yeah. How do you figure that?"
"Well I would have stabbed him for starters," she said. "I know I wasn't there when I should have been but I often thought about doing it before I finally could get my sorry ass to actually do it-
"Hold up. You killed my dad?"
"Yes, I killed my husband. A year or so after you ran away. He was scum. An outsider who was angry with me for what I'd done like he was an innocent babe. It wasn't the first time he tried to rape me when I killed him," she said it so reasonably. That yes, of course, she'd stabbed him. He'd been a horrible rapist and she was allowed to kill him. "Then I went home because I had no reason to keep being at the Farm. I don't know what they did with my unfaithful husband's body."
There was a way she said it all that tickled Desmond's mind. He didn't know what or why. It was just a way she worded things. "He's really dead?"
"Oh yes, very dead," she said.
"What do you want from me?"
She frowned sadly at him. "Oh, Des, I don't want anything from you. Except maybe that one day you can forgive me for being a horrible mother to you. Just seeing that you're alive makes me happy. Everyone else wrote you off. Said the proeathans had killed you, or worse. They didn't have faith."
"And you did?"
"What's a mother if not someone who always believes in their children?"
Desmond leaned back in the chair. He didn't know what to make of this. Really he was just sort of blown away by all of this. "I need to get to Tikal," he said.
"So I was informed," she said. "We are also going to Tikal."
"Why?"
"To investigate it. It appeared a few weeks ago so we're going to see what it is. What are you going there for?"
"That's my business."
"C'mon, I shared my reasoning with you, you share yours with me. That's how a conversation works."
"My friends are there," he said, giving nothing else away. Or that was the plan. She just blinked at him and he got the feeling he'd just given everything away. He did his best not to squirm.
"I see. Well, we can help you get there. My people are cutting through the jungle as we speak to break us through to Tikal. Once we have a clear passage you're more than welcome to come with us."
"Yeah… okay," Desmond said slowly. "And what do you have in mind while I wait?"
Kaley uncrossed her legs. He couldn't remember when she'd crossed them. It made him nervous. He wasn't sure why. There was something incredibly dangerous about Kaley Miles now that he'd had some time to be in her presence. The same way there was something dangerous about Altair and Ezio and Hawk. The same way there was something dangerous about him. No wonder people showed her wary respect out of fear and she'd done nothing to him. She'd been so pleasant and soft-spoken and outright kind to him. "That depends on you," she said. "You can do nothing, or you can help out if you want."
"If it's all the same to you I really don't feel like helping the people who bashed my face in," Desmond said.
"Hmm," she smiled a little. He really didn't fucking like it when she smiled like that. "Alright," she pushed herself up. Desmond followed her lead. "Just don't cause trouble and no one will bother you. I know that will be incredibly difficult for you but just do your best," she said like she knew everything about him. Shit, maybe she did.
"I make no promises," he said, still wary.
"And if you need anything just ask John."
"Yeah, sure…" Desmond said and she went and held open the tent flap for him. He left the tent. The camp was surprisingly quiet. It had been louder earlier. Desmond hunched a little and went to find a place to sit in the shade, out of the way.
—
Desmond woke up from a session with Lilith trying to get his head right again. He opened his eyes and looked around the empty grass room. No one was in here with him. "Hey, Demeter," he said, not sitting up.
"Yes, Desmond?" she asked.
"What do the other humans say about my mom?"
"What do you mean?"
"I think I heard them say something like… she's a demon? Or that she's possessed? I swear I heard it. Like how people talk about Lucy."
"Yes. That is talk around the ark after what happened at the plantations," Demeter said.
"Why?"
"I'm not exactly sure. I've never seen."
"Anyone know?" Desmond asked his AI at large.
"Sorry," Pluto said. "Just people saying rumors and talking. Nothing concrete."
"Mmmm. Can you ask her to come here?"
"Of course," Demeter said. There was a moment of silence. "She says she's coming."
"Yeah… hmmm," Desmond looked up at the ceiling and then at the chalice where Lilith was contained. It had hit him like a lightning strike while training with her. He got up and put Lilith back in her high saline water tank.
Kaley arrived in a few minutes and Desmond was waiting for her. He was thinking about the rumors he heard about her. The very specific word choice they used when describing what she did when fighting at the plantations. He looked over when she came in. "Des, honey, you wanted to see me?"
"Yeah. Think fast," Desmond said and in a split second tossed a fireball right at her head.
He was expecting it was but still surprised when she caught it with a cry of surprise and tossed it over her shoulder. "Desmond! That's rude," she scolded him. "Don't just throw things at people." Her eyes were black, just like Lilith's, just like his.
"Huh," he said.
They stared at each other and then Kaley realized what had just happened. "Oh… uh… whoops," she said.
"Well, now I know why people are fucking terrified of you," Desmond said. "Black eyes do nothing for you."
"Don't say it so rudely."
"I mean they don't do much for me either," and he blacked his eyes out. Her lips twitched. He went back to his regular vision. "Who taught you that lil trick?"
"No one," she said. "Remember how I told you I killed my husband?"
"It's your favorite story to tell me," Desmond said.
"Maybe I didn't stab him. Maybe I burned his face and dick off with my hands instead," she said and gave an uninterested shrug. "Hard to not figure it out after that."
"Planning on telling me?"
"When it was necessary," she said dismissively and finally came over to him. "And who taught you?" she asked.
"Another really scary lady. You'd probably love her actually. Her name is Lilith."
"Ha! Really now?"
"Yeah."
"Well, where is she?"
"She's… kinda dead?" he looked at the water basin.
"Oh. One of those infernal devices. I've tried using one. Back when the world was first starting to go to shit I got ahold of one. I couldn't deal with the screaming. Such temperamental things. Gave me a terrible headache.
"Yeah. They'll do that. Lilith is different from the vessels you've used."
"Maybe. Doesn't matter really. What did you need, sweetie?" she asked so nice and pleasant.
"I just wanted to see if I was right," he said. "Rumor is you're a demon who shoots lasers out of her eyes-
Kaley's laugh interrupted him. "I wish. That sounds awesome! No. Laser eyes is a bit above my pay grade. As fun as that would be," she said, lips curled back in a smile that made her ten years younger.
"That's… all I guess."
"You want some help, sweetie?" she asked gently.
Desmond stiffened a little. "Excuse me?"
"Your technique was pretty bad. It was basically hot air."
"That's what fire is," Desmond said slowly.
"Yeah but fire can also be this," and her eyes blacked out. She reached down to yank some grass out of the ground and held it in her hands. Her hands were palm up in front of her and Desmond watched as first they literally caught on fire, burning the grass, and then the heat got so intense it was like she was literally melting the air and carbon and turning it into plasma. Desmond stared even as he broke out into a horrible sweat in his long sleeves. Kaley wasn't sweating. Then she closed her hands into a fist and all at once the bright light and heat of the plasma was snuffed out. She tossed the smoking, but not burning, residue of her plasma onto the ground with a shake of her hand. "And there you go," she said.
"Holy fuck," he said, beyond impressed. "How did you make plasma?"
"By making the world so hot even it melted," she said wickedly. "You want to learn to make plasma?"
Desmond's mouth opened and closed a few times and some sounds came out of his mouth but not words. "You can teach me how to make plasma?"
"Sure? I taught your cousin Ryan how to make heat. He isn't super great at it but it's one of the few ways he's figured out how to channel his anger."
"And John?"
"Light, little heat, nothing special."
"Nothing special! They can literally make light and heat out of nothing. That's amazing," he cried.
"But it's not useful. Not for our fighting. It's a fun play at things, but it isn't anything worthwhile. Not like what I can do, or what I hear you can do."
"And what's that? Hmm?"
"Well if what the proeathans and your AI say are on the money it could be anything. Or everything, rather. Or that you did some really impossible before. I can help you. With what I know at least. I can't do the things they do," she grimaced a little.
"Plasma seems like a bad idea in the wrong hands," Desmond said.
"Well, I'm the only one who can do it."
"What I just said."
She rose her brows at him. "You think I'm the wrong hands, Desmond?"
"I think like Cain you're worth being wary of and treated like you could do whatever the hell you want and most of us wouldn't be able to stop you."
"That's a sweet thing to say."
"It wasn't a compliment."
"Well I took it as one," she shrugged. "If that's all I'll be going."
Desmond watched her leave before his stomach twisted. "Wait," he took a step after her, his hand coming up a little. He didn't want her to go. She stopped and turned around, looking over her shoulder. "I would like you to show me how to really play with fire," he said. It wasn't even that really. He could care less about using pyromancy. He just wanted to try, maybe, to have a relationship with this woman he didn't know but was actually his mother.
She smiled a little. "Okay," she said brightly. She came back over to him. "Show me what you can do."
—
It was weird when Desmond went looking for Altair and found his mother sitting on his chest. Not in a sexy way. She was straddling him but the way she had his hands pinned down told Desmond this wasn't a friendly meeting. At least not now even if it might have started off that way. It was hard not to start things off pleasantly with Kaley. She was just so unassuming and pleasant it was easy to forget she could probably rip your throat out or burn your face off.
"Uh… I'm not interrupting am I?" Desmond asked.
Kaley released Altair's wrists and sat up, looking at him. "Oh, Des honey, of course not," she said.
"He busy or can I talk to him?"
Kaley looked down at Altair then put her fists on her hips. "Maybe. He hasn't annoyed me too much today."
"Okay…" Desmond said slowly. He moved over to the two of them. Altair hadn't moved since she let him go. "You didn't put him Under did you?"
"Hmm? No. I let Cain have that game. I don't find it cathartic like he does."
"Right." Desmond still had trouble with this whole his mom was alive and enjoyed giving Altair a hard time. Even though she told him they'd known each other before Desmond was born. He'd lived on the Farm for a while. It had been then that Desmond realized that this was the man Duncan had talked about a lot. A faceless man. A nothing man. Not that he was nothing but that he was no one, nobody, and had no identity. "Can you get off him. It's weird talking to either of him when it looks like you're about to do something."
"Heh, not this time," she said and got off Altair, standing up.
It took Desmond a second to process that. Then he didn't want to process it. "Wait… EW!" he yelled.
Kaley laughed. "Yeah, remembering your parents have sex is always gross," she said sort of apologetically.
Altair had finally moved. He'd put his hand over his face. Desmond was busy wishing brain bleach was a thing because he didn't want to think about Altair having sex with anyone, let alone his mother. That was another level of gross. "I didn't need that knowledge in my life," Desmond said. Kaley just shrugged.
"We all know things in life we wish we didn't. Now, what did you want?"
"I honestly forgot," Desmond said. "I was just so traumatized I literally forgot why I came here in the first place." He knew it had something to do with Jake but he couldn't remember. Something something Jake was terrified of Kaley. He wasn't sure why. Both parties said Kaley had never touched the kid so she hadn't hurt him. Desmond didn't know why Jake was scared of Kaley. He was scared of Kaley the same way he was scared of Cain.
"Then it probably wasn't that important," she said nicely.
"Oh, leave the kid alone, Kay," Altair said and finally got to his feet.
"You know," she wrapped an arm around Desmond's shoulders. Kaley was tall for a woman so could just manage it. "Lucy told me about how you know each other. The Animus thing. Though you guys look so alike. Must be the middle eastern in our family, huh?" she asked Desmond but was looking at Altair.
"I guess," Desmond shrugged. He couldn't really see Kaley's face. Altair kept looking between him and Kaley his face strikingly pale.
"Well shit," Altair muttered in Arabic and covered his mouth.
"Ah," Kaley said. Desmond looked at her. He had no idea what had just happened. "Well, I've caused enough trouble for one day. I'll leave you boys to it." She squeezed Desmond's shoulder and gave him a peck on the cheek before letting go and leaving.
"You okay?" Desmond asked Altair when she was gone. He was just staring at Desmond. "What was that about anyway? Altair," he said louder.
Altair physically jumped. "What? Sorry, I didn't hear you," Altair said.
"You okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," he said. He was still staring at Desmond like Desmond was some crazy anomaly. "Ah- you need something, Desmond?"
"I think Jake was looking for you? But he said Demeter told him you were talking to Kaley and you know how he is- Did you hear anything I just said?" Desmond asked. Altair was back to staring at him like he was shocked Desmond existed.
Altair cleared his throat. "Jake's looking for me?"
"Yeah. You sure you're okay? I can ask her to leave you alone if you want." If nothing else Kaley usually did what he asked when he asked her nicely.
Altair rubbed his face with one hand. "No. It's okay. I… she's got the right I guess. Fuck," he ended up muttering.
"What?"
"Nothing. It's fine," Altair cleared his throat. "So uh… where was Jake?"
"The aquarium," Desmond said. That was the name the people of Demeter had started calling one of the bigger tanks full of fish that supplied with a good supply of their protein since fish were easier to raise than livestock a lot of the time. Less labor intensive at least.
"Right. Thanks," Altair said. "I'll go see what he wants then," and he walked past Desmond. Desmond looked after him with more than a little confusion. Even more so when Altair looked back at him like to make sure Desmond was real. When he saw Desmond was watching him back he quickly turned back around and practically ran away.
"The fuck just happened?" Desmond asked the empty room. He had no idea.
—
Unsurprising when Kaley wasn't bothering Altair she was out on the practice yard. Along with Desmond and the others, Kaley was one of the strongest users of Eagle Vision and it was a boon to have her showing others how to use it. She was sparring with Ryan, his cousin.
Desmond still couldn't get over the fact that he had cousins. He had family. Ryan was a few years older than him, even more so now thanks to him being a prisoner for five years. His father was Kaley's older brother but he was dead. All of his family had been killed during the five years Desmond had been captive. He had a lot of rage but was shit at holding it together. As was clear by how he fought with Kaley. Kaley, for all being fifteen years older than him just sort of tossed him around and deflected his blows.
Desmond stood and watched them spar for a little bit. He knew Kaley knew he was there. She had this weird sense to know where he was when he was close by. She'd talk to him once she'd finished with Ryan. Ryan didn't look like Desmond at all. Kaley said he looked just like his mother, meaning not a Miles. Desmond didn't put a lot of weight behind such words. It didn't matter to him.
Eventually, Kaley threw Ryan to the ground for the last time and stood over him, winded. "Alright, Ryan, good practice. Let's call it here."
"Aww, I was just getting going, auntie," he said. Desmond knew the bluff. Ryan was heavily winded and Kaley
"Heh. We'll do some more later, kiddo," she said brightly.
"Okay," Ryan sighed. "Hey, Desmond," he waved a little.
"Hey," Desmond said, just waving with a short hand motion.
Kaley came over to Desmond. "Hey, sweetie."
"Please don't call me that," Desmond said not for the first time.
She sighed a little. "Okay. Did you need something?"
"What did you do to Altair?"
"Hmm? What do you mean?"
"He's avoiding me. Which he only started doing after I found you two the other day. Jake says he's avoiding him too. What'd you do?"
"Nothing," she said and he couldn't detect a hint of a lie. Meaning she wasn't lying. Kaley had the same problem Desmond did once you knew her, she was an easy read. "I haven't seen him since then either. Despite what he thinks all his problems are actually his own fault and not everyone else's."
Desmond blinked at her. "You obviously don't know anything about him because he's literally the most self-deprecating guy I've ever met in my life but alright," he said blandly.
"Did you need anything else, sweetie?" she asked.
"Not really-
"Wanna spar?" she asked.
Desmond mulled the invitation over. "No fire," he said.
"Awww, but what's the fun in that?" she complained. "Not like John's any help," she huffed.
"He's figuring it out."
She folded her arms, cocking her hip out a little, "You sure you're my son? You're really no fun at all."
"At this point, I'd rather be no one's son when my dead dad was an abusive jerk and my mom's as crazy as a bag of cats," Desmond said.
"You're so mean," she pouted at him just a bit. "Though I do agree with what you say about my husband, he's better off dead."
That finally turned something over in Desmond's brain. "I'll make a deal with you, we can use fire, but you have to answer a question truthfully."
"Don't I always?" she rose a brow at him.
"No. You answer just enough to be infuriating and six months in Cain's company hasn't helped," Desmond sighed. That made her giggle.
"Alright. This sounds amusing. What do you want to know, sweetie?"
"Why do you always call Andrew your husband?"
She gave him a look. "Is that really the question you're asking? I did marry him."
"I mean like… hmm," he needed to word this better. "When you've talked about Duncan you say 'Duncan's father' but not when you talk about him with me."
"Oh," she said, mouth open a little in an O shape. "Well, that answer is very simple really. Because Andrew's not your father-
"WHAT!" Desmond yelled right over her. "What do you mean?"
"Oh calm down, sweetie, you're causing a scene," she patted his arm in a gesture that was supposed to be comforting but was foreign to Desmond who'd never experienced comforting, motherly, gestures. Indeed, a bunch of the people practicing were now looking, including a lot of Ilythians who looked very nervous.
"What? No. Fuck you. The fuck do you mean Andrew's not actually my dad?"
"Exactly what I mean, now stop yelling it's doing you no good," she said. Desmond just stared at her. "I know you're upset but take a deep breath and calm down." Desmond found himself doing as ordered and he took a deep breath as she said, held it a few seconds, and let it out slowly. "You don't even look like him I don't know why you thought you were," she rolled her eyes.
"Is that why he hated me? Cause you were sleeping around?" he demanded.
"Save me the anger. My husband was an even bigger whore-
"Mom!" he slapped a hand across his face.
"He slept with literally every other woman at the Farm and I know at least two of the Farm kids were Duncan's half-siblings because Andrew couldn't keep it in his pants."
Desmond was surprisingly angry. That now he knew why Andrew was such a horrible hard ass to him and belittled him and probably hated him. Because he saw some other guy in Desmond's face not even having the self-awareness to see how big of a hypocrite he was. But he was also mad that his entire life was a fucking lie and now he was faced with the fact that the man he thought was his dad wasn't actually his dad and he'd been exhausting a lot of patricidal rage on a guy who was both dead and not actually related to him.
"You made my life horrible growing up, you realize this right?" he asked Kaley, furious at her too. Maybe Andrew had been a lying cheat but Desmond hadn't even done anything other than being born,
"Not intentionally," she said. "I didn't want you to grow up like that… but," she frowned and sighed. "The mind has other ideas on what it can and can't do."
"Why didn't you tell me before?"
"Because I knew you'd fly off the handle, just like you're doing now," Kaley said patiently.
"No, ya think?" he growled. "Who?"
"Come again? Full sentences only, sweetie," she said.
"If Andrew isn't my dad, who is?"
She raised her brows at him. "My, you really take after him if you haven't figured that out. Look in a mirror. You look just like him. I'm surprised you haven't figured it out by now."
"That doesn't answer my question. Just tell me."
"And ruin the surprise?" she smiled at him. "Absolutely not."
"Uhg." He turned and stalked off.
"Hey, you said we'd spar-
"Fuck you," he called over his shoulder at her and kept walking. Fucking infuriating people who held information over him for nothing more than their own entertainment and amusement. He got into the lift at the edge of the training field and looked back out. Kaley was standing there, a hand on her hip. Her entire body language radiated a scolding mother to their toddler having a temper tantrum. Fuck her! Seriously! He glared at her and dialed in the place he wanted to go. The lift closed.
When he exited the lift he was followed by a cloud of steam. He didn't have to go entirely black eyed to just release a lot of rage as heat and when it hit the cooler air outside of the lift it instantly turned to steam. He went to his room and didn't know what to do with himself for a few seconds. Then he just screamed into the empty room as loud and long as he could manage until his throat hurt.
"Desmond, are you alright?" Artemis' voice asked through breaks in the sound. The lights were flickering in the room.
"None of you talk to me. I don't need it right now," he snapped.
He was still trying to deal with his anger. It was hard. He'd never felt this level of anger and betrayal. Since he'd learned his natural inclination to pyromancy keeping that temper in check was even harder. At least without a release. Kaley said the best way to release your fury was as fire so hot it was plasma. He didn't know how the fuck she could make plasma with her fucking mind but she could. Desmond settled for just venting it as heat that made the glyphs all over his body glow painfully bright and smoke. It kinda hurt, like he was burning them deeper into his skin than they already were.
When he was finally finished his room was sweltering and Desmond crouched down into a little ball, holding his knees. He wasn't as mad now. He wasn't calm but he wasn't mad either. He had every right be pissed as fuck too. But he wasn't so angry he needed to vent more heat in rage. He was like a smoldering coal and was just low level angry now. He stayed like that for a while until that anger died down too, enough for him to think rationally.
He remembered what Kaley had said. That he looked just like the person who was his actual dad. Did she say that to torment him that meant he'd never meet the guy or because he did know him? Either option was frustrating to think about. Slowly he stood up. Because he'd been so warm his joints didn't protest and his limbs didn't complain about the position he'd been holding for so long. He went to the bathroom and turned on the lights. Or tried to. The lights weren't working. "Demeter," he barked. "Where are the lights?"
"You— burned them out," she said, her voice staticky. "You burned out— all the lights in a hun—dred foot radius around you."
He sighed and leaned against the sink. The basin was warm but not hot from the amount of heat he'd made. "Yeah, okay. That's fair I guess. Sorry."
"It's— okay. I expected— such when you— arrived."
Desmond rubbed his face and just turned on some cold water. It came out warm a few seconds before gushed cold. Desmond splashed his face with some cold water and after drying it off left his room. He caught a lift somewhere else, not even sure where he was going. When the lift opened he sighed. "Fuck, I'm stupid." He was in the area of Demeter where Lucy's room was. It was far enough away from his room to not have been affected by his tantrum. He hated calling it a tantrum. It hadn't been a tantrum. He went to the door and knocked. He didn't even know if she was there. He waited a few seconds and was starting to second-guess himself.
The door opened. "Desmond?" Lucy asked, she was still dressed but was dressed down for comfort. "What are you doing here at this hour?"
"Uh… sorry? What time is it exactly?"
"It's ten at night. Is everything alright?"
"I— can I use your mirror?"
"What?"
"I burned out the lights in my sector cause of something… something I did. Can I use your mirror?"
"Sure?" she wasn't quite sure herself but did let him in.
"Thanks," he said and went in. Lucy showed him to the bathroom.
"You okay?" she asked him.
He stared at her. "I have no fucking idea," he said and grabbed his hair. "I just learned the guy I thought was my dad, not actually my dad?"
"What?" she asked.
"Yeah. So I'm kinda fucking pissed— shit, sorry, sorry," he took a deep breath because the lights above were flickering again. He didn't want this to ruin or control him. He could be above this. "I'm kinda mad I had to go through like sixteen years of needless suffering because my mom and Andrew are both easy as hell," he sighed.
"Desmond, I'm sure she had a good reason-
"Maybe but she didn't tell me, and she let him abuse me for sixteen years and Duncan for eight because he was mad about me."
Lucy reached out and touched his arm. "I'm sorry. I'm sure she didn't want that to happen or think it would. Why do you need to use my mirror?" she asked to lighten the mood a little.
"Kaley said I… look like him? My actual dad."
"That's a funny thing to say considering he's probably dead," she said with a frown.
"Yeah," Desmond said but even her saying it Desmond knew that wasn't the truth. He knew that Kaley wouldn't tell him that unless he was alive. He hoped it wasn't something creepy. He turned away from her and looked in the mirror over the sink. Lucy leaned into the bathroom and he could see her head poking through the doorway. "Can I have some privacy?"
"Just don't break my mirror," she said.
"I won't."
"And Desmond," she added.
"Yeah?"
"Kaley and I have talked a lot. Don't give me that look," she added. "She knew we were something and wanted to get to know me. She's a… well she's something but she doesn't just do things for no reason. She's not a petty rebeller. Everything she does has a purpose, even if it's just to make her feel better. Her cheating on Andrew with your dad was because she actually liked him and not because she wanted to get back at Andrew. So I know this sucks and totally screws up your worldview but… you weren't an accident. After what she'd been through a lady like Kaley doesn't just make mistakes like getting pregnant with some guy who isn't her husband's kid."
He was surprised to find that that actually made him feel better all things considered. Andrew always told him he'd been an accident because Kaley never wanted more kids. Hearing from the time you were five or so that you an accident and a mistake really fucked with you. Hearing Lucy tell him Kaley didn't just fuck up like that a second time was oddly comforting. "Thanks," he said.
"That's what friends are for," she said.
Desmond nodded and closed the door softly. He looked in the mirror. He just saw his face staring back at him. But now he was trying to find someone else's face in it too. He saw his mother's hazel eyes and dimples as he moved his face around. His hair was darker than hers but that didn't help at all. His nose was all wrong. Kaley was as big a white American mutt as you could get with a perfect little white lady nose. Desmond's was bigger and convex instead of concave like the other Miles all had. So that was something. His skin was darker than his mom's too. Not that you could tell because he was always so wrapped up and his skin was strangely pale right now all things considered. The longer he looked the less he saw.
Desmond sighed and hung his head. "I don't even know what I should be looking for," he muttered. Then he looked up and nearly jumped out of his skin. It was a Bleeding vision of Altair reflected back in the mirror at him. Back when he'd lived through Altair's life. His unsmiling face looked back at Desmond under the hood.
Desmond opened the door. "Hey, you figure it out?" Lucy asked him. She was sitting on her bed reading a book.
"No," Desmond said and shook his hands out a little. "I… just had a mini Bleeding episode. It kinda freaked me out."
That got her attention and she sat up. "Oh? What happened?"
"I haven't not seen my own reflection in a long time," he said, his hands were sort of shaking. He rubbed them together.
"Oh no. Who was it? Ezio or Altair?"
"Does it matter?"
"No, just curious," she said.
He sat on the side of the bed. "I… uhg," he shook himself a little. "Bleeding always freaks me the fuck out."
"It should," she said. "Your mind knows it's wrong." She leaned over to rub his knee. "You're okay though. Do you see him now?"
"No."
"Do you look like him?"
Desmond looked down at himself. He was still wearing his black clothes. Black long sleeves, black pants, black gloves. No white anywhere. "Yeah, at least what I can see I don't look like him."
"Well you look like Desmond to me," she said.
"Right," he rubbed his jaw. His face felt like his face. A thought came to him and his hand slowed. "Venus?"
"Yes, Desmond?" she said in Altair's voice because she was annoying like that.
"Come here." Venus appeared wearing Altair's face and body. He beckoned her and she stepped over to him. "Lucy, do me a favor."
"Sure," she said. She'd put her book down now.
"Do we look alike to you?" he asked her, motioning to himself and Venus.
"Hmm." She shrugged.
"What's that mean?"
"I mean you've both got some middle eastern blood in you. You're just handsome middle eastern guys-
"Lucy, my family doesn't have any," Desmond said. "Or not enough for it to matter like that. Venus, face that way," he pointed. "How about from this way?" he faced the same way so Lucy could see them from the profile. Lucy didn't say anything. He looked at her. "Well?"
"You have his nose," she said, staring at him. Then she lightly slapped her hand over her mouth. "Holy shit," she whispered around her hand. "Your mom slept with Altair-
"Don't say it like that!" Desmond bemoaned. "Do I really?" he demanded.
"Side by side like that, yeah, it's uncanny. Huh… you guys actually look really alike now that I'm aware of it. That's-
"Uncomfortable?"
"I was going to go with uncanny," she said. "Does he… know?"
Desmond felt his stomach bottom out. He rubbed his jaw. "I… don't think so." Then he remembered what had happened the last time he'd seen Altair and what Kaley had said. "Actually, I think he does now."
"Oh Desmond," she sighed. She put her hand on her cheek. "I'm sorry you have to deal with so much weirdness in your life."
"You and me both," Desmond grumbled. He folded his arms.
"Excuse me? What's going on?" Venus asked.
"Nothing your busy body self needs to worry about, Venus. You can leave."
"Well, whatever it is sure has made you so pleasant to be around."
"Get out," Desmond snapped. She made a face at him and vanished.
"Do they… not know?"
"Despite what you believe or they want me to think they aren't watching me all the time," Desmond said. "Christ… this is so dumb!" he yelled. He aggressively rubbed his face. "Jake is gonna hate and be scared of Kaley even more now if he ever finds out. Just what I need," he grumbled. He looked down at his lap, folding his arms again. What was he going to do? He was still kinda mad at Kaley for keeping this from him, taunting him with it, and for sleeping with someone who wasn't her husband thus making his life infinitely more difficult and terrible than it should have been. Not that he exactly blamed her because Andrew was an asshole but still. She hadn't even considered how her actions affected other people. Mainly: him! He'd been really pissed in the moment but since it had been almost an entire day and he'd burned off so much of that rage he didn't feel as hateful now.
He sighed, sagging a little. "You okay?" Lucy asked him. She'd taken back to reading her book again for how long Desmond had been there thinking.
"No. But I will be," Desmond rubbed his mouth. "Thanks for the help, sorry for disturbing you," he made to get up.
Lucy leaned forward and grabbed his wrist. "You can sleep here if you want," she said.
"I appreciate the offer. I'm not going to be sleeping anytime soon."
"Desmond-
"I'm too wired to sleep. I'll get some rest, just not right now."
She frowned a little. "Alright. Don't do something stupid." She released his wrist.
"I make no promises," he said. "Goodnight."
"Night," she said as he headed out. On the other side of the door, he leaned against the door and let out a deep sigh. That was how he knew he was fucked up. He hadn't taken Lucy up on her offer to sleep in her room. Sometimes it was all he could think about.
"Someone, tell me where Altair and Kaley are," he said, tipping his head back a bit.
"Kaley is in her room, sleeping," Demeter said. "Altair is with Cain."
"Cain? What's he doing with Cain?"
"Being surprisingly civil, for once," Morpheus said boredly. "They're in the human nursery."
"They aren't like… arguing or killing each other or anything?" Desmond asked.
"If they were I would have had someone eject them," Demeter said. "Violence is not allowed in the nursery, or bad or mean language."
"Heh. You're such a mom, Demeter," he said.
"I was designed to be the mother of a new world if need be, I should hope so," she said.
Desmond chuckled. "Alright. Make sure they stay there and behave will ya?"
"I doubt they'll be going anywhere soon. They appear to be having a very important discussion."
"Yeah? About what?" Desmond asked walking towards the lift.
"I am not sure. It is in a human language I am not familiar with."
"Probably cause they didn't want you nosy bitches eavesdropping on them," Mercury piped in.
"Mercury, language!" no less than three of the other AI chimed in.
"What? I'm an adult."
"Than act like it," Artemis scolded him. "And not the little whiny brat you pretend to be."
"Then act like it," Mercury repeated in a mocking mimicry of Artemis' voice.
"Ahg!" Artemis cried and then they both went out of the area. Desmond could feel the way they came and went. He got the feeling Artemis was reprimanding him.
"He going to be okay?" Desmond asked as he called the lift.
"Yes. He'll be fine. Artemis was a Drell. They and the Lesh'v'rin never got along well," Pluto said.
"Oh… wait. Isn't Cain-
"Yes," Pluto said as the lift arrived. "Let's keep them separate. Artemis has made it well known she doesn't want to know who she was. It will make her sad. Do not tell her what I told you."
"Okay, sure," Desmond said and got into the lift. "I thought the Adjatevs just took people from their own nation to sacrifice," he said once he'd dialed in where he wanted to go.
Venus scoffed. "Hardly. They took whoever they wanted who best benefitted them. Only Pluto is Adjatev," she said gravely.
"So… what? You're all from the nations the Adjatevs took special joy in destroying?" Desmond asked.
"Basically. They stole an important person from their culture and killed us for their own gains."
"Hmmm," Desmond said. "I'm sorry."
"It isn't your fault," Morpheus said.
"It's an empathy thing. You can't understand," he said. The lift stopped and let Desmond out. He didn't go right away. He wasn't quite sure what he was going to do or say. "I want you to give me privacy. If I need you I'll call you," he said.
"Of course," Demeter said.
"That includes you too Venus," he added.
"I have to obey you don't have to qualify," she said with a tone that sounded like she was rolling her eyes. It was weird hearing it as Altair's voice.
"And… stop that."
"What now?"
"No more being Altair."
"Oh you're just no fun."
"That's a command," Desmond said firmly.
"Fine," her voice was foreign to him. He wasn't sure who she was. Maybe this was even her real voice.
Desmond waited until he didn't feel them anymore and he was alone. He went into the nursery. The lights were turned down but not off. The children were all asleep at this hour. He looked around in Eagle Vision and saw flashes of blue around a corner. He went towards it but didn't go around it just yet. There was a bit brighter light coming from around the corner and he could hear Altair and Cain talking. He could hear them clearly but their words were lost on him. It was some language he didn't know. Some tongue that had either died or become so changed it might as well be a dead language. Shit, they could have been speaking literal old English and Desmond would have been useless.
He stood there just listening. He was surprised by their tones. It was very calm. Calmer than he'd ever heard either of them speak to each other. There was no condescending superiority from Cain either. It was just two men talking like old friends. Desmond didn't want to interrupt them but he'd get no rest until he confronted Altair. He was nervous. He rubbed his hands together nervously before stepping out around the corner.
Cain and Altair were sitting in chairs, leaned towards one another. The light was coming from behind them on the wall of a setting sun with a happy face on it stuck half buried in the wall painted like a cartoon forest. The sun gave off dusk light. The conversation stopped and they both looked up when Desmond made his presence known. Altair gulped.
"Oh, hello, Desmond. It's rather late, you should be sleeping," Cain said in his calm, measured, way he'd been talking to Altair.
"I was looking for Altair," Desmond said.
"Oh?"
"Yeah. Asshole's been avoiding me all week," Desmond said. Anything to lighten the mood because holy fuck it felt oppressive.
Cain chuckled and looked at Altair, giving him a disapproving smirk. "Good one there, brother." He turned back to Desmond a bit. "Did you need him or you just wanted to talk?"
"Both," Desmond said. "In private if that's alright? I don't trust you as far as I can throw you, Cain; that isn't very far."
Cain laughed a bit louder. "Yes, I suppose that's fair. Alright," he got up with a groan and stretched, his spine cracking. "I know you both love staying up too late to be healthy but some of us actually enjoy our beauty sleep."
"Shame there's not enough hours in the day for you," Altair said but didn't look at Cain even as he said it. He hadn't taken his eyes off Desmond the entire time.
"And to think just a moment ago we were getting along so well," Cain rolled his eyes. He nodded at Desmond and walked away.
Altair didn't move. He just stayed exactly as Desmond had found him, staring at him. Desmond stared back before looking away. He went over to the chair Cain had been sitting in and took a seat. Altair followed him with his eyes. Desmond sat back against the chair and looked him over. Altair didn't know Desmond knew so he wasn't going to say anything but he was obviously stressed about the entire situation. It was going to get worse before it got better.
After a few minutes, Desmond leaned forward, forearms on his thighs, hands dangling between his legs. "You okay?" he asked Altair.
"I've been better," Altair said stiffly.
"Me too, honestly." Then Desmond sighed deeply. "So…" he rubbed his hands together, not quite wringing them, just rubbing the palms together. "Kaley told me why Andrew was such a fucking dirtbag to me growing up." Altair said nothing. "I wasn't his, which pissed him off. Even though apparently he was a huge hypocrite."
"That was sort of his thing," Altair said and then had to clear his throat. Altair's face was pretty pale.
Desmond exhaled. "Yeah… well… look this is weird okay."
"You're telling me," Altair said, his voice cracked and he cleared his throat again. "Did she… tell you?" he ventured.
"She pointed me in the right direction," Desmond leaned heavier on one thigh to rub his arm. He looked at Altair and now he knew why he had that momentary Bleeding episode. His brain was going 'you idiot' and making him aware of what he was actually looking at. One of the handful of times Bleeding was actually useful.
"I didn't know," he blurted out. "I swear I didn't know."
"I believe you," he said. "You're too much a control freak to just accidentally get a married lady pregnant."
Altair rubbed part of his face. "So you'd believe," he sighed. "Kay's like a fucking natural disaster. Impossible to predict or control."
"I mean… she is a pyromancer-
"Don't remind me," Altair groaned, rubbing his hand across his eyes.
Desmond grinned a little. "I don't want this to change anything," Desmond said. "Even if it… is weird." Altair nodded but still had a hand over his eyes like couldn't deal with Kaley and she wasn't even on the same floor as them right now.
Altair pulled his hand down off his face with a sigh and reached over and grabbed Desmond's fingers which surprised him. "It won't," he said seriously. That was more than a little bit of a relief. Then Altair let him go and leaned back in the chair.
"What were you and Cain talking about?"
"How dumb I am," Altair sighed. "And said I fucking did it again with the self-fulfilling prophecy. Was so sure about how the future was going to go I just… made sure it happened," he smacked his thighs lightly. "Good job me," he said, self deprecatingly. He sighed again and rubbed his jaw. "I'm too old for this shit."
Desmond couldn't help himself. He really should because it was weird but he physically couldn't stop himself. "My mom didn't think so-
"You be quiet," he growled and Desmond grinned at his weak glare.
"So, what now?"
"Now I wish I still drank, I could use one," Altair grumbled.
"I'm being serious," Desmond said.
"Well. She was holding this over us. Now she can't. So that's something," Altair said. "And goddamnit Desmond this makes shit so awkward for me, you realize this?" he demanded.
"Dude, I don't wanna hear it," Desmond said blandly.
Altair gave him a hard look. "Jake slept with you," he said.
"… Oh. Oh. I am so sorry," Desmond said, meaning it. "You could just… not tell him."
"Yeah, but I'll know. UHG!" he threw his hands up a bit, dramatically. "I can't believe I'm with my own son's sloppy seconds," he muttered in Arabic.
"You don't have to think of it like that you gross asshole!" Desmond yelled.
"Desmond, keep your voice down," Demeter suddenly chimed in.
"I told you not to listen," Desmond said sharply.
"I wasn't. But when decibels get too loud in the nursery during sleeping hours I look in to make sure everyone is alright. And you were yelling in a room full of hundreds of sleeping four-year-olds. Shush," she said sternly.
"Sorry," Desmond said, hunching a bit. He gave Altair a look. "Let's just not talk about that part huh?"
"Please," Altair sighed.
A silence fell over them. Not an awkward one, just a silence they'd shared countless time before the world went to hell and even after. It was the same comfortable quiet of Desmond falling asleep in motel rooms next to Altair and he'd move his fingers through Desmond's hair. Or the silence of sitting outside after a bit of training and they were both sweaty and tired from trying to beat the shit out of each other. Or when they flew and Altair drifted off to sleep against his shoulder. Or when the four of them would sit together in a diner way too early in the morning when even the waitress was still half asleep and they all just wanted a cup of coffee before Ezio opened his big fucking mouth. Or sitting together outside the little barn in Russia his first year and Altair helping Desmond learn to walk again. Or Altair not bothering to ask if Desmond ate on their journey across the top of Africa to Cordoba and they'd just stand and watch the rich teal waters of the Mediterranean.
Neither of them said anything for a long while. Then Desmond swallowed to clear his throat and he said, "I'm glad Andrew isn't actually my dad."
Altair lifted his head a little to look at him. "Me too," he said and reached over to put his hand over Desmond's. "I'm glad you're mine instead." Desmond smiled at him a little and Altair returned it and gave his hand a squeeze.
If you like the story or excited about the update you should leave a comment. Even if to just say 'I love this story!' I appreciate all of them and let me know you appreciate me too. Please don't feel intimated by the long reviews on this story. I assure you I love them all.
I based how In Charge Kaley acts on Meryl Streep from The Devil Wears Prada and how fucking SCARY AS SHIT her character is like she could skin you by looking at you but always keeps her cool and doesn't ever raise her voice because she knows she could kill you.
y'all don't know how much GIGGLING was had from me bringing up the fact that Jake is Desmond's 'ex' and Altair and he are a thing. So MUCH okay lols.