August 30, 2013

"M: The Master Assassin gives the novices their missions." Desmond held up the book so that Andrew could appreciate the illustration for a few seconds, then turned the page. "N: Every new Assassin starts as a novice. Heh." His smile sparkled at the baby boy relaxing on his chest. "I wonder if you count, kiddo. I mean, you're certainly 'new'." He ran a finger softly around one of Andrew's delicate ears, over the fresh fuzz of brown hair that was starting to replace the light beige he'd been born with. "But I'm pretty sure this here means, like, new recruits, not newborns. Anyway, next up is O: The Templar Order-"

"Ah-hgm."

At the sound of William's throat clearing, Desmond looked up from Alphabetical Initiation. "What's up, Dad?"

"Just letting you know I, ah, won't be here for the next two, three weeks."

"A mission?"

William couldn't fail to detect the eager interest in Desmond's voice. "Not as such. We do have a few things to monitor in DC. But I think it's really just Gavin wanting to touch base with me, and introduce me to some of his new recruits."

"Huh." Desmond had heard of this Gavin guy; he was one of the high-ranking Assassin muckity-mucks: just a step or two down the totem pole from William. "Well, uh, have fun, I guess. Spencer going with you again for protection?"

"No, Gavin's team is protection enough. They're coming round to collect me tomorrrow."

Desmond blinked. "Oh. He... and his team... coming here? But, uh... Andrew." He sat up, mouth twitching nervously as he cradled the baby. "The whole... thing... with my uuu... you know." The word "uterus" felt strange and uncomfortable on his tongue, so he swapped it out. "Secret, remember?"

"Yes, Desmond," William said, a bit peeved, "I haven't forgotten. I don't like keeping secrets from my own people, but I'm willing to keep up the pretense of Alice de Rossi as his mother."

"But won't they notice she's kind of not here?"

William sighed. "They're only stopping by very briefly, Desmond, all right? They probably won't even come in the building, and if they do, they certainly won't be investigating the place too thoroughly."

"Good." Desmond gestured with his eyes around the bedroom. "One look at this place and they'd know I'm a fuckin' bachelor."

August 31, 2013

"Christ on a cracker, Dad. You guys are like twins." Desmond's eyes flickered back and forth between the two men. Gavin Banks was nearly the spitting image of William Miles. Both faces had the same gunmetal gaze, the same time-worn creases, even the same pattern of hair, though Gavin's was a little longer and wasn't nearly as gray, but instead mostly a dull brown. On top of that, they both carried themselves in that same self-assured manner that screamed 'Look, I know what I'm doing here, don't question me'. The combined effect was as if Desmond was seeing two of his father standing before him, albeit one a bit younger.

"Yes, we do look a bit similar," William said offhandedly, as if the similarity was barely noticeable. "You're not the first to remark on it."

"Perhaps we're distantly related." Gavin gave the Mentor a slight smile. "Maybe I should give the Animus a whirl and investigate that sometime."

"Oh, speakin' of which: Can I use the Animus while you're gone?" Desmond blurted.

William frowned and stepped closer to him, hands grasped together behind his back. "I thought we were clear on this, Desmond. It's not necessary anymore."

"Yeah, but if you're not gonna be here for weeks, then that'll slow down our progress with Edward," Desmond pointed out, the words spinning out of him boldly. "We gotta find that Observatory before the Templars, and I want to help."

"He's got a point there, Bill," Gavin said. "Why not let him-"

William flung a hand up to cut off his friend's sentence. "Because he's already used it for far too long, that's why not!"

"I can handle it, Dad, geez!"

"Can you, really?" William spat. "Don't think I've forgotten what happened during Andrew's birth."

Desmond ground his teeth, considering his response carefully. "That was just stress, okay? I was really stressed because Alice was having a tough time. And it was just a language bleed anyway, I was still me, not Ezio or anyone else."

William stared him down. Desmond got up from his chair to meet the stare as an equal. He was not a child anymore and he would not let himself be treated as such. "Look, I understand you're worried, but I know my limits, all right? I've been in there for days and I was barely affected, and this time I'll just be doing a few hours at a time."

"You did say you needed to finish those Kenway memories pronto," Gavin put in.

William wheeled about to face him and shot back, "We're getting through it fast enough, we don't need to risk Desmond's mental health."

"'Fast enough' might not be as fast as Abstergo's moving, Bill. How about some of my team stay here and join the sync effort?"

"No, Gavin, we need your team to stay focused on the situation in DC!"

"What's more important: preventing the shutdown or finding the Observatory?"

"They're both important, obviously! It doesn't have to be either-or!"

"All right, all right." Gavin held up his hands in defeat. "I get it, Bill, you're worried about your son. Maybe overly so, but I guess that's not unexpected after what happened last year."

"Yes," William stepped back to stand beside Desmond, put an arm around him and grasped his shoulder tightly, "and don't forget, he's got a son of his own to care for now."

Desmond stiffened at the touch but didn't pull away. "How many times do I have to tell you? I can be an Assassin and a dad at the same time. If you'd let me, that is," he added as a harsh coda.

"You're still an Assassin, no matter what, don't you forget it," William said, looking unflinchingly into Desmond's eyes.

"Hey, uh, sorry to interrupt," came Rebecca's voice from behind Gavin, "but Andrew's all fussy, I can't get him to chill out."

William and Gavin fell silent and spun to look at her as Desmond rushed over to take the squalling baby off her hands.

"Hey, kiddo, what's up, what's wrong?" he said, rocking him gently and prodding his butt to check his diaper.

"Spencer just changed him, so that's not it," Rebecca said.

"No," Desmond said with slight laughter in his voice, "I think that's exactly it." He laid Andrew down on the table and unsnapped his onsie, then nimbly adjusted something on the side of the diaper. His cries immediately changed timbre, becoming much mellower. "All better," Desmond said brightly, refastening the onesie and lifting Andrew back up to snuggle him over his shoulder.

"Huh?"

"Spencer did a shit job of diapering, Becca." Desmond switched flawlessly to a one-handed baby hold and used the other hand to mime stabbing a dagger into his own hip. "Frickin' safety pin came undone and was poking him right here."

Rebecca whistled. "Man, it's scary how fast you figured that out."

"Hard to believe he's a first-timer at parenting," Gavin said with a smile. "So, this is the baby I've been hearing about."

"Yeah. This is my little kiddo. The amazing Andrew Miles." He'd quieted down by now, and Desmond again felt that weird sense of warmth filling him as he looked at the boy's peaceful face. That's the love, dude, he reminded himself. You love your kid, same as any good parent.

"May I?" Gavin held out his hands.

Desmond hesitated. It wasn't that he didn't trust Gavin- he was, after all, an Assassin, and one of his father's oldest friends- but still, handing Andrew to a guy he'd just met didn't feel right. "Uh, I dunno. He doesn't let just anybody hold him. He's most comfortable with me... And Alice, of course," he added as soon as he remembered to.

"Oh." Gavin lowered his arms and looked around. "Where is Alice, anyway?"

"Showering," Rebecca answered, perhaps a little too quickly.

"Well, I'd like to meet her before we're off. Congratulate her on this fine little fellow."

"I'll pass along the congrats," Desmond said. "She takes really long showers. Like really long."

William nodded. "True, and we do need to get a move on soon, Gavin."

"Right you are, Bill. Well, it was nice to meet this guy, at least." Gavin patted Andrew's head lightly and turned to leave.

Desmond followed them wordlessly out the kitchen and down the hallway until they came to the front door of the building, then finally grabbed at his last chance. "Come on, Dad. I don't wanna be useless."

William turned back with a quizzical look. "Hm? Oh, the Animus issue still." He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "You're not going to give up on this, are you?"

"Stubbornness must be a Miles family trait." Gavin smirked slightly and nudged William's arm. "Hey, think of it this way, Bill: maybe the effects clear out of your system after a period of abstinence. And Desmond hasn't been in it since December, so maybe there's nothing to worry about."

"No, he-" William began, but stopped.

Desmond knew he'd been about to disclose the month spent in search of Andrew's parentage, and he suppressed a grin. Can't tell him that, Dad, 'cause then the whole Alice story falls apart. What say you now?

"I... I don't..." William's face was tense as he struggled with his thoughts. "I just... I don't understand why. Why do you want this so much, Desmond?" His voice rose to fever pitch and he took hold of Desmond's shoulder again. "Is it some kind of game to you?! To see how much you can take before you snap?!"

"Of course not!" Desmond snarled.

"Then why? I thought you hated the Animus! And now you're begging to be put in there again!"

"Look, I don't want to go crazy any more than the next guy, but I also don't want the Templars to find out where we are!"

"But still, you don't have to-"

"But I want to!" Desmond cut in. "It's my fault they have my DNA in the first place, 'cause I was a stupid kid and ran away and got captured, and now they can see all my ancestors and that's bad enough, but if they find the Observatory then... Well, you know what'll happen then, I don't hafta say it." He frowned and unknowingly hugged Andrew tighter.

"Ah." Now William understood. The dynamics of the situation were all too familiar.

The father that would do anything to protect his son. Would risk his sanity to keep him safe. Would risk the world burning to keep him alive.

"All right." He patted Desmond's shoulder briefly. "I'll allow it."

Desmond's eyes lit up, almost unbelieving.

"But we'll limit your Animus time more strictly than that of the others," William added, wagging a stern finger. "One-hour sessions."

"One hour?" Desmond whined. "That's like nothing! Gimme two hours!"

William pursed his lips. "...Ninety minutes."

"Deal." Desmond again shifted Andrew to one arm and shook hands to seal their agreement.

"And if there's any sign of trouble, Miss Crane will cut you off, is that clear?" William lifted his eyes to shoot a pointed glance down the hall at Rebecca.

"Of course Dad, of course." Desmond smiled and poked at Andrew's nose playfully. "Hear that, kiddo? Daddy's gonna help find the crystal skull!"

Andrew responded to this by drooling happily and flailing one arm in the air.