Disclaimer: My Italian is not the greatest and I am still learning the language, so I apologize in advance if it is grammtically incorrect. If you speak Italian, please let me know if something is wrong so I can go back and fix it. I understand that not everyone will understand it, so I try to make it easy to figure out what is being said in the dialogue. However, if that isn't enough, I suggest using Google Translate...I do not own the Assassin's Creed series or any other products that may be mentioned in this story. Please don't sue me.

Dieci

I was fortunate enough to eventually doze off for a few hours, but it wasn't pleasant at all. I had an ambiguous series of nightmares, each short horrible vision flowing erratically into the next. At first, the dream was lovely, for I was at some distantly familiar park, clambering up a playground with my family. I giggled as I slid down the swirling slide, chasing my younger brother the second I leapt off.

Abruptly, out of the blue, Antonio appeared, watching me with amusement. Spotting him, I ran over and embraced him tightly, almost crying. Smiling, he returned the hug and led me by the hand over to the swings, where he then sat down and allowed me to sit on his lap. His feet lightly pushed off the ground and while the swing started to slowly sway back and forth, he placed an arm around my waist. Soothed by his touch and the gentle rocking of the swing, I leaned back into his chest and relaxed, resting my head under his chin. He planted a loving kiss on my forehead in response and I thought it couldn't get any better.

Then suddenly, I was alone on the swing, gripping the cold iron chains. Bewildered, I glanced around the playground for Antonio, but there wasn't any sign of him or my family. In fact, the entire park was deserted, devoid of life. The sky had darkened considerably with ominous thunderheads and a chilly gust assaulted my body.

I was literally waiting for the cliché tumbleweed to roll past my feet when an arrow whizzed by. Startled, I quickly surveyed the area before my eyes fell on an archer positioned in one of the playground's towers. Before I could react, a cluster of men clad in heavy metal armor and wielding swords came descending down a slide, their greasy faces fixed on me.

If I wasn't so terrified, I probably would've been on the ground in hysterics, laughing at how ridiculous the guards looked coming down that slide, trying to act all tough with their big, scary weapons.

Sensing the danger, I leapt off the swing and sprinted away to a grassy field that surrounded the playground. Icy raindrops began to pelt my skin as I ran up a small hill, gradually falling faster and faster with every step I took. The spiky blades of grass were soon soggy with water, forcing cold mud between my toes as my bare feet squished along. I managed a fleeting glance behind me and to my terror, I found the guards right behind me.

Just as I was starting to create a distance between my pursers and me, an explosion of wind knocked me off my feet and sent me tumbling down the hill I had worked so hard to climb up. The relentless rain battered my person as I rolled down the slope, watery mud invading my eyes and bits of grass becoming lodged in my mouth. With a painful crash to my shoulder, I landed at the bottom of the hill, disoriented. My legs wobbled as I dizzily got to my knees, coughing. When I raised my eyes and perceived the image in front of me, it took all of my willpower to stifle a scream.

A line of armed men stood in front of my eyes, their swords, crossbows, and axes aimed at me. But I wasn't focused on them at all. In fact, I barely took note of their presence. My attention was wholly fixated on the bloody pile of bodies behind them. And to my horror, I identified the corpses as my family and Antonio.

I whimpered, unable to find my voice, to express the terror building up in my chest. Hesitantly, my hand reached out towards them, my fingers quivering. The guards blocking my path started to move in, brandishing their weapons. Falling on my butt, I dug my nails into the clumps of sodden grass and backed away in fear. However, an arm roughly pulled me to my feet and the cold blade of a dagger was pressed against my jugular. Slowly, I twisted my head to peer up at the person holding me hostage, cognizant of the razor sharp edge held to my throat.

With a pang of betrayal piercing through my heart, I instantly recognized the man as Ugo. He had a wicked grin plastered across his face, his eyes hungry and lustful. I parted my lips to say something, but all that came out was a squeak. A sinister snicker erupted from Ugo's lips as he heaved me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and carried me towards the other men, groping my butt all the way. In an instant, I was viciously thrown to the ground, the damp grass providing no cushion for my back whatsoever. Gritting my teeth, I looked up through the stinging rain at the ring of grinning men that had gathered around me. As they started to knit their circle closer together, my lids drooped and I lost consciousness.

And then my eyes snapped open and I found myself back in my room, my head aching. I was wheezing uncontrollably, my heart racing so fast I was afraid it was going to burst. The layers of sheets were tightly coiled around my body like a cocoon, my legs twisted in them every which way. A cold sweat had formed on account of the nightmare, resulting in my top sickly sticking to my body like glue.

I struggled to sit up, trembling, my arms so weak that I had to lean up against the wall. As my clammy hands attempted to brush away the damp hair matted to my neck and face, I noticed that my eyes were wet and burning and still producing salty tears. My breath came out in short shrill gasps as the fear came upon me that I may not be able to calm down.

A hand with a kind touch ever so lightly landed on my shoulder. "Maddalena! It's alright, piccola, it's alright. You're up now."

I barely turned my head in the direction of the owner's voice and saw a fuzzy outline of Leonardo through my blurred vision. He was sitting next to me on the edge of the bed, a frightened look on his face…which was strange because I was the one who was truly terrified.

After blankly gazing at him, I slowly glanced around the room, not really processing the images my eyes were showing my brain. A faint gray light was streaming in through the slightly ajar window, signifying that it was early morning. A white hooded figure was seated at the end of the bed, perpendicular to da Vinci, their shadowed eyes trained on me. Slowly, I comprehended that I was awake and my breathing eased down a notch on the hysterics meter. My fingers became knotted in my hair as my hands held my head in place to stop it from shaking.

"…just a dream, mia cara," Leonardo was saying. "It's all over…it was just a dream…you're safe now."

"Dream…" I repeated, whispering, my voice hoarse, "just…dream…just a…oh, oh God."

I covered my face with my hands and wept bitterly, the hot tears spilling over my cheeks. Leonardo's arms reached over and drew me to his chest, where he then began to rock me back and forth in attempt to calm me down. His murmured Italian words did absolutely nothing to soothe me and I only clutched to the fabric of his clothes, muffled sobs escaping my lips. He tried asking me about my dream, but I just fiercely shook my head and continued to snivel into his chest. Defeated, he gingerly patted my back, like a mother would when comforting her fussy child.

"I'm going to close your shop; you are in no shape to work today," he said softly, and then I felt his head turn in the direction of the door. "For God's sake, Ezio, get over here and help comfort the poor girl."

I heard the suppressed unenthusiastic sigh that came from the end of the bed, but I paid no attention to it. The empty space next to me filled and the mattress groaned as he sat down on my opposite side. I felt Leonardo smoothly ease my cringing body into Ezio's strong arms in one fluid motion before the bed alleviated as he got up and quietly closed the door behind him.

I didn't care at the moment if Ezio, the one who had ignored me for months, the one who treated me like I didn't exist, was the one awkwardly holding me. I was just thankful that a real human being was there for me to cry onto, to release the confusing and dreadful feelings.

Surprisingly, his hands guided me towards his lap and cradled me against his chest, permitting me to wrap my arms around his neck and bury my face into his collarbone. To my astonishment, the tears still gushed from their ducts and I hiccupped as a result of trying to put an end to the hysterical sobs. Something softly pressed against my hair and it took me a minute to realize that it was his cheek, resting atop the crown of my head…which honestly calmed me down a bit just because I was curious and stunned by his actions.

"Can you tell me about it, piccina?" he asked quietly.

I squeezed my eyes shut and tightened my hold around his neck, trying to ban the nightmare from my mind. "No…no…"

He accepted the answer and, keeping a secure arm around my waist, began to stroke my back soothingly with his free hand. The steady beat of his heart and his body's warmth took a hold of my attention and made me temporarily forget my horrible dream. Eventually, my desperate gasps for air morphed into quiet sniffs and the rushing water from my eyes slowed to a trickle.

When I had settled down and was merely concealing my disgusting face within Ezio's white robes, he lay me down on the bed, his hands readjusting themselves to keep me to his chest as our bodies became vertical. My fingers remained fastened together, encompassing his sturdy throat, feeling the pulse of blood rushing through his veins. His arms had enclosed themselves around my waist, holding me tightly to his body, providing me with a sense of safety.

After the hysteria and terror had subsided, an enormous wave of drowsiness crashed down upon my being, probably due to the physical exhaustion my weeping had caused. I inched my face towards the hollow of his throat and nestled my cheek against it, brushing past the folds of his hood with my nose in the process. Closing my heavy eyelids, I exhaled deeply, eventually expelling a lengthy yawn.

"Go back to sleep, signorina," he commanded softly.

Easier said than done. Even though my restless night and shock over my nightmare had tired me out, I was wide awake now and nothing in the entire world could have forced me back to sleep. So just to humor him, I took slow, even breaths and loosened my vise grip around his neck, making it seem like I was submitting to a nap. His body relaxed in response and simply kept me in a gentle embrace, but he became so motionless and quiet that if I wasn't so close to his nose, which exhaled a puff of warm air that brushed across my hair every five seconds, I would've thought that he had slipped into a coma.

The atmosphere became absolutely tranquil, the silence so abundant that I could distinctly hear each time the arteries of his jugular pumped warm blood to his brain. The continuous sound was clear as a bell, and since I had nothing better to do but awkwardly remain in his cuddle, I decided to silently count each pulse.

One thousand, six hundred twenty-seven beats later, Ezio's arms ever so slowly unwound themselves from around my body and disengaged my hands from his neck. I made myself as limp as possible, allowing my limbs to be placed across the mattress as I continued to lie on my side. My entire body shivered when a cool sheet was thrown over me, but the involuntary reaction was so subtle that only someone who was critically watching me would notice.

The bed lightened considerably as he slipped off, his leather greaves forcing a creak from a single floorboard when he touched down. Thinking that I was fast asleep, he paid no attention to the sound and strode over to the door, his footsteps quietly echoing as they moved across the floor. I impatiently waited for the shutting of the door so I could finally open my eyes and move my rusty joints, but he paused. Even though he was clear across the room, I could definitely make out a faint clicking noise…and after a minute, I realized that Ezio was ever so slightly fidgeting with the doorknob, creating the ambiguous racket that pierced the stillness of the bedroom. My eyebrows knitted together in irritation, but I quickly smoothed my face over when a low sigh drifted back to me.

The strained whisper was almost inaudible. "Mi dispiace, signorina…"

And then he left, the steady clunk of his greaves becoming fainter and fainter until it was certain that he had gone downstairs.

As my lids lifted, I began to ponder the troubling statement. Sorry for what? Acting like a complete asshole whenever we happened to "talk?" Pretending like we hadn't known each other for five years? Not even acknowledging my existence when it was his displeasure to be within a hundred foot radius of me?

If he really wanted to say "sorry" to me, why not grow some balls and say it to my face?

Groaning in frustration, I snatched the pillow next to my head and clamped it over my face. I desperately wanted to get out of the house and go outside, but I figured it should at least seem like I had napped for a while. Consequently, I made myself remain in the room for a solid two hours, staring out the window absentmindedly the majority of the time…which proved to be incredibly boring after the first three minutes.

Just as my eyes began to turn away from the reflective glass, something moved across the rooftops and seized my attention. It was a group of thieves, clambering along the red tiles, chasing one another. They were all playfully shoving each other along, laughing heartily whenever a poor unfortunate happened to trip and desperately scramble to regain his balance. The scene was heartwarming and made me smile…that is, until I recognized one of the bandits.

In an instant, my nightmare came flooding back into my brain. I backed away from the window, stumbling a bit, until I reached the edge of the mattress and sat down. I shook my head back and forth, thinking that the physical action of moving my skull would somehow make the dreadful images dissipate.

My gaze then fell on the bed and its sheets and the night preceding my dream crept into my thoughts. I shuddered and drew my knees to my chest, resting my chin atop my kneecaps. My "lover" had very nearly raped me and the experience probably had scarred me for life; I wouldn't be surprised if it was part of what caused my nightmare. When I did have that horrendous vision, Leonardo and Ezio had been at my side to comfort me, whereas he had ditched me before morning because I hadn't given him exactly what he wanted.

And now he was out goofing off with his buddies, not even dropping by to visit, to perhaps apologize for leaving in the middle of the night without telling me.

I sprung off the mattress and proceeded to throw on a fresh tunic, irked. A glance to the mirror immediately frightened me and enticed me to cover my hideous face with my hood, but I decided against it. Who cared if I looked like I had just rolled out of bed? I would just go over to the Thieves' Guild, talk to the bastardo myself, and then come back and get some sleep.

I stomped down the stairs, my irritation only increasing when I tripped over my own two feet and tumbled down the last few steps. I groaned and pushed myself back up, silently swearing. Maybe I should've just stayed in my room after all.

"Maddalena!" Leonardo rushed to my side. "Stai bene, piccola?"

"I'm fine," I grunted, getting to my feet. "I just fell."

He gave me a worried look. "You really shouldn't be up, mia cara. Why don't you go back upstairs and rest some more?"

The idea was appealing, but I forced myself to shake my head. "I'm alright…I just want to get some fresh air."

Despite his face telling me he didn't buy the excuse, he still returned to the desk he was working at, reminding me to be careful. I left the workshop in a huff, not necessarily mad at Leonardo, but mad at myself, Ugo, and everything else. My annoyance fueled the fire already raging through my heart, so I spent the entire time walking over to the guild silently muttering to myself, preoccupied with angry thoughts. I marched with deliberate heavy steps, my hands clenched into fists, glaring at anyone who dared to give me a funny look.

By the time I had reached my destination, I was pissed off. It took all of my willpower to smooth over my tight, aggravated face when I was let in by Rosa. When I learned that my "lover" wasn't home at the moment, I literally had to restrain my hand from punching a hole in the wall. Seeing my dissatisfaction with her answer, Rosa led me to a decent sitting room and offered me a seat on a lumpy couch, where she then managed to distract me with small talk. I listened politely as she told me about her healing leg, but I wasn't really processing what she was saying. After a while, her mouth was still moving but all I heard was a low buzz. When I finally stopped responding all together, she finally noticed my inattentiveness.

"Ugo must have really fucked up." She rolled her eyes. "What did the stronzo do?"

I took a deep breath. "He…he wanted us to…to have…sex."

Rosa stared at me blankly for a moment, analyzing what I had just said. When she made the connection, a grin broke out across her face and she laughed hysterically. I gave her a puzzled look as she became doubled over in her guffaws, snorting, struggling to breath in between her fits of mirth.

"Idiota," she giggled, wiping a tear from her eye, "that's exactly what you want him to want."

I gave her a disgusted look. "No! Absolutely not!"

"Cristo, Maddalena, don't tell me you're still a virgin."

I closed my mouth and looked away in shame, blushing ever so slightly. It was kinda perfectly normal, at least in most cases, to still be a virgin when you were practically twenty-one years old in the 21st century…but this was 1481. I should've given birth at least three times now.

When the question was left open-ended, Rosa gently touched my arm. "Non ti preoccupare, you two can get it done tonight."

"That's not exactly something I want to do with him at the moment," I muttered, pulling my hand away.

She studied me curiously. "What exactly is the relationship then?"

Before I could respond, the front door opened and in walked a group of thieves, the man of the conversation in the midst of them. Once I realized that he was there, I stood up and put my hands on my hips. He noticed my presence and beamed, outstretching his arms towards me. His smile quickly faded, however, when he took note of my scowling expression.

"Outside, Ugo," I growled.

Confusion clouded his features. "Is there something wr-"

"Now."

He frowned and headed for the door, glaring daggers at his snickering buddies. I followed him out to the empty square, gently closing the door behind me. When I was confident that we had some privacy, I turned to Ugo, arms crossed over chest. I stood there for a minute, glaring at him in silence, not bothering to say a single word.

He must've figured out why he was in trouble, for he said, "I can explain, bella."

"Please do," I replied quietly.

He paused, analyzing the anger seeping from my tone, before continuing. "Duty calls, signorina. I had a very important mission to attend to."

"Important enough to leave in the middle of the night without even telling me?"

He rolled his eyes. "It's not like we were in the middle of something…"

I couldn't believe what had just come out of his mouth. "So it's fine to ditch me just because I didn't sleep with you?"

Ugo's lip twitched and he only shrugged, silently giving the affirmative to the alleged statement. My frustration instantly spiked and it became extremely difficult to restrain my hand from slapping itself across his face.

I turned my back on him. "Then maybe this won't work out after all."

He grabbed my shoulder. "No, mia cara, it can! It was an errore to do that to you, Maddalena. It will never happen again. Prometto."

I glanced over my shoulder at him. Remorse was plastered across his features, a sad frown engraving itself into his face. Sighing, I rotated my body back towards him and took a step closer.

"Promise, you say?" I was fiercely gazing into his eyes.

Ugo smiled. "Sì, signorina."

He then held out his hands, asking for a forgiving hug. Eyeing him warily, I accepted the invitation and lightly wrapped my arms around his waist. I expected the embrace to last a few seconds, so when he tilted his head down towards my face in order to capture my lips, I became upset with him again.

"You don't deserve that right now, signore," I said coldly, pushing myself away from him.

A shadow ominously crossed his features, but he kept his tone casual. "Do I at least deserve a walk with you?"

I only shrugged and made my way out of the square, deciding to let him answer the question on his own.

A/N: It's a WAY shorter chapter than all the others. I know. To be honest, this chapter is all that's left on my computer since I've last made the attempt to progress this story - which was back in late 2012, I think. I realize that updates have been few and far between, and I've probably lost followers because of it. I deserve it. Life has a funny way of catching up to you. For those of you who actually care - and I really do appreciate the comments in the reviews - I finally got the whole college thing worked out and currently am studying at community college and working part-time to save money for a four year university. As for the novel I had mentioned, it actually turned out to be a bigger project than anticipated. Even though the creative writing class has long passed, I've still been working on it because I really want to get it published. So, as before, all of my energy in writing has been directed towards that. Lucky for you guys, however, I've been in the midst of writer's block (procrastination) lately, and with my now flexible schedule due to college, I have more time to continue this story. My writing style has obviously changed since I began writing this back in 2011, so I'm going to go back through the chapters, edit, replace and update, and hopefully continue on. I pretty much remember how I wanted the plot to go, but it might take me a while to get back into the grove of this story. I apologize again for making you all wait so dreadfully long and appreciate anyone left that has stuck with me so far.