Originally this chapter was going in a completely different direction (my muse likes to take advantage of my shameless love of Altair) but I decided it was off topic since the future sections are supposed to be primarily about Desmond. As you'll see later, a plot twist that easily could've been an entire chapter was condensed and shifted so as to keep away from these sections also being Altair-centric.
For reference:
Desmond:21
Lucy:21
Shaun:21
Ezio:18
Leo:18
Altair:34
Malik:35
Disclaimer: I do not, nor will I ever, own Assassin's Creed or anything for that matter.
When Desmond made his way to his brothers' house that night, it was well after midnight and he wasn't sure if he should even expect them to still be awake, but they most certainly were. "Hey Des," Ezio greeted him with a smile. "Great timing, I have to talk to you and Al."
Desmond nodded absently. "I have to talk to you guys too."
"Then come sit down," Altair said, a glass with some unidentifiable, probably alcoholic, liquid in his hand.
Desmond nodded and took a seat across from Altair. "Where's Malik?"
"Doing paperwork at headquarters," he replied. "He forced me to come home since I'd been there almost all day. Besides, I was serious need of a drink. You want something Des?"
"What've you got?"
"Well," Altair said as Ezio took a seat beside Desmond. "I'm drinking red wine, want some?"
"I'll pass unless you've got something stronger?"
"Whiskey?"
"Sounds good," Desmond replied.
While Altair went into the liquor cabinet in the corner, Ezio took a deep breath. "What's on your mind Ezi?" Altair asked, handing Desmond his glass.
"Well," Ezio drawled with a grin. "I'm kind of hopelessly in love with Leonardo."
Altair chuckled. "We could tell that much."
"I'm serious," Ezio said, sinking into the couch with a dreamy grin. "Like, in an out of my mind kind of way. I don't even know what to do, I feel so weird."
Desmond smiled. "So, now that we've established that, what're you going to do about it?"
"See, that's what I want to talk to you about?" Ezio said. "I want to ask Leonardo to marry me, but I wanted to talk to you two first to make sure I'm not absolutely insane."
Altair smiled. "You're not insane at all, a little enthusiastic maybe, but if it's what you want to do go ahead."
"Yeah Ezi," Desmond added. "We won't stop you if it's what you really want."
Ezio grinned and sprung up feeling giddy. "I'm gonna buy a ring tomorrow, while Leo's in class so I don't have to worry about his find out."
Desmond smiled at his younger brother. "You know how young you are though, right?"
Ezio nodded. "I figure, why wait, you know? With the job I've got I face my mortality of a daily basis. If I live a long time, that's great, but I at least want to die a happy man, married to the man I love."
Altair and Desmond smiled at the youngest of their small family. "And the family grows," Altair said.
Desmond sighed. "Even more pretty soon."
"What do you mean?" Ezio asked.
"Lucy might be pregnant," Desmond said. "And the kicker is, I'm gay so she's dead-set against us getting married, not that I really wanted to anyways."
Ezio flopped back into the couch. "Pregnant huh," Altair said. "That's pretty big."
"Seriously," Ezio said. "Wow. And you finally came out of the closet, you're having a great night, I bet."
Desmond nodded. "I don't know what to do guys."
"Make sure Lucy's taken care of? Didn't you say Vidic's still after her?"
.o.o.o.o.o.
Desmond woke up sleeping on the couch. "Morning," Altair said, sipping coffee on the couch across from him, watching the morning news. "Sleep well? It seems that whiskey knocked you out by the time Ezio went up to call Leo last night."
Desmond shrugged. "You have a spare toothbrush in the bathroom?"
"I don't think I ever threw your old one out."
Desmond stood a stretched. "Good, I liked that toothbrush."
"Then why didn't you take it with you."
Desmond chuckled on his way to the bathroom. "Just a memento so you wouldn't forget about me."
While Desmond was washing up, Altair sat watching the news until there was a knock on the door. He groaned before standing to answer. "Hi Altair," Leonardo said sheepishly. Ezio's not home, is he?"
"No, he went out for a while. You want me to tell him you came to look for him?"
"No, I actually came to talk to you."
Altair smiled. "Alright, come in. You want something to drink."
"Oh, uh no," Leonardo said, taking a seat on the couch. "I can't stay very long, I've got class in an hour and a half."
Altair sat down as Desmond reentered the room. "Hey Leo," he said with a grin. "How are you?"
"I'm good," Leonardo replied, fingered the hem of his jacket.
"What's on you mind?" Altair asked.
Leonardo bit his lip. "I was wondering about Ezio," he said. "I know I shouldn't think about it and I don't usually doubt him and I really wish I could just stop, I don't know, thinking, because I know at least relatively where he is most of thetime but I just can't help i-"
"What are you thinking exactly Leonardo?" Desmond asked with a slight, unintentional smile.
"Ezio's not cheating on me, right?" Desmond couldn't help but laugh, Altair had to try not to le his own chuckles slip. Leonardo's cheeks tinted pink. "What's so funny?"
Altair took Leonardo's hand reassuringly. "I wouldn't worry Leo, Ezio's a good boy. If you heard what he was telling Des and I last night there wouldn't be a doubt in your pretty little head."
"But what about those women he was talking to and he'd been being kind of cryptic for the last couple of days."
"Women?" Desmond asked.
"They looked like they'd come from a whorehouse."
Altair chuckled. "The courtesans," he said. "They help up with cover and we protect them from the law, it's a mutual agreement thing. Strictly business. If Ezio acts different toward them it's just the way he is. You should know he flirts with just about anything humanoid that breathes."
Leonardo looked at them, disgruntled. "So what did he tell you two last night?"
Altair smiled tenderly at him. "Well now that would just ruin the surprise. He said he was going to talk to you about it this weekend."
"But it's only Tuesday," Leonardo whined.
Desmond laughed. "You'll be fine to wait, trust me. I don't really want to watch you cry today."
"I'm going to cry?"
Altair smiled. "It is a distinct possibility."
Leonardo's look turned confused. "What's he planning on telling me?"
"We can't tell you, you know," Desmond said.
His cell phone rang a moment later, he left the room to answer, "Hello?"
"Hello Desmond," an ever so familiar British voice said.
"Hey Shaun, what's up?"
"I wanted to make sure you got home alright last night, you seemed a little off."
Desmond chuckled nervously. "No, I'm okay."
"That's good," the historian replied. "So listen, I was wondering if you maybe wanted to go someplace with me this Friday."
Desmond blinked in confusion. "Where were you thinking?"
"To dinner, maybe. Or a movie. I don't really care."
"So a date?"
"Yes." He squeaked in reply nervously.
Desmond chuckled quietly. "How about dinner and a movie?"
"Sounds good, be here at six-thirty sharp."
"Yes sir."
"Later."
"G'bye."
Desmond put his phone back in his pocket gingerly, still processing the conversation with a giddy smile. He walked back into the living room and his grin slipped away. Altair sat on the couch looking lost with Leonardo sitting beside him rubbing his back. "What's going on?" Desmond asked.
Altair looked up at him. "You're not the only father Des."
Desmond's eyebrows furrowed. "What're you talking about?"
Altair sighed and stood up. "You remember that thing Malik's been telling me for years that Maria kept putting off telling me; I have three kids, triplets. Adha, Sef, and Darim."
Desmond's eyes bugged. "You're not kidding."
"Why in heaven's name would I be joking?"
Desmond shrugged. "When did she tell you?"
Altair stared at the phone in his hand. "She didn't, Malik called and said Adha showed up at headquarters today asking for me."
"What're you going to do?"
Altair shrugged with another sigh. "I haven't the slightest idea. They're all fifteen now, there's no telling what Maria's told them about me and-"
"Would it make you feel better if Mal, Ezi, and I went with you to meet them?"
Altair hugged his younger brother. "Please," he sighed.
Desmond nodded and left the room to call Ezio. "Hello?" the youngest brother answered.
"Meet us at headquarters, it's an emergency."
"What kind of an emergency? Is someone hurt?"
"No, nothing like that, Altair really needs us though."
"Okay, I'm on my way."
Walking back into the room, Leonardo was hugging Altair goodbye. "I have to get to class," he said. "Tell Ezio to call me when he gets a free minute."
"Will do," Desmond replied. When Leonardo was gone, he looked at Altair was was tying on his shoes. "You ready for this?"
"As I'll ever be," he replied, standing.
Desmond drove them to the large building. Even with Al Mualim gone, it still left Desmond with a sense of dread and foreboding when he walked toward the tall, heavy doors. Ezio was standing near the entrance, thumbing through his phone when they walked in. "What's up?" he asked. "What's the emergency?"
Altair walked toward his office without replying. "Apparently Altair's been a dad for fifteen years and none of us knew," Desmond replied in a whisper.
"What?" Ezio shrieked. "You're kidding."
Desmond shook his head as they followed their older brother. Malik stood outside the entrance, waiting. "She's waiting for you," he asked to Altair. "I wasn't exaggerating when I said she was definitely yours."
Inside, skimming the books lining the shelves was a girl with medium skin and probably reaching Altair's nose. She turned at the sound of extra people in the room; she had short wavy brown hair that was cut close to her head with bangs hanging close to her eyes, short pieces framing her face to her jaw line. Gold eyes almost identical to Altair's stared at them, the shape of her face reminding Desmond of his brothers and subsequently himself. She was lean, obviously well versed in freerunning or acrobatics told by the state of the muscles in her legs. She was dressed in a white hoodie with denim shorts, running shoes on her feet, and a backpack over her shoulder. As she stared into Altair's eyes a grin overcame her features, a scar similar too her father and uncles' only on the opposite side stretching; it became blatantly apparent to everyone in the small room that this girl was most certainly, in fact, Altair's daughter. She bounced forward quickly and hugged him tightly. "Nice to meet you, dad."
Ezio and Desmond looked at each other with surprised grins. "You really weren't exaggerating," Desmond told Malik.
Malik just nodded and watched the duo with a small smile of his own. "Her brothers both look more like Maria," he said. "They both decided they didn't want to meet him until after Adha did because she's been the most anxious apparently."
Desmond nodded slowly and somewhere in the back of his mind he decided if Lucy really was pregnant, it might not be so bad. When he cell phone rang again, he was anxious to answer. "Hello?"
He went to stand by a window as Lucy replied, "Hi."
"What'd the doctors say?"
She took a deep breath. "I'm definitely pregnant."
"Okay," Desmond replied. "What do we do next?"
"We?"
"I'm in this with you,"he replied. "If we're not living together I'm definitely going to help with the hospital bills and everything else."
"Thanks Desmond," she replied."Rebecca said she'd take care of my "personal wellbeing" until it's born so no one has to worry about me straining myself or anything."
"That's good. Just so you know, I fully intend on having shared custody after it's born."
"That's perfectly fine with me," she said. "I was hoping you'd say that actually. I didn't want to have to take on the entire responsibility of raising a child by myself."
"On another note, Altair's a daddy too."
"No way! Who's baby is it?"
"You remember I told you about his old friend Maria. She had triplets fifteen years ago and never told him. He just met his daughter a few minutes ago."
Lucy was chuckling on the other end. "I shudder at the thought of two children let alone three."
"It's not really a big deal for Al now though, they're most grown up."
"I feel bad for him, he missing all of their childhood."
Desmond made sure no one was listening as he said, "I hate to say it, but it might be for the best he didn't raise them. All that business with Al Mualim when they would have just been born might've gotten them and Maria all dead."
Lucy sighed. "I'll let you go, you probably want to go talk to your niece, huh?"
"I guess, she looks just like us. She even has the scar."
"Your kidding."
"Not at all."
She laughed. "Well call me later with the details, I want to hear all about her."
"Yes ma'am," Desmond replied.
He hung up a rejoined his brothers and niece. "So you're uncle Desmond?" Adha asked him as she hugged him as well.
"I'd rather not be called uncle," Desmond said. "I'm not that old yet."
.o.o.o.
