Chapter 25
Hana was glad that the Master Assassin was present when she found her way up the stairs to the Mentor's study.
"I should have a map drawn for you, Hana." Al Mualim commented, subtly telling her that she was late.
"I'm sorry," She flushed scarlet, "I'll, um…try not to get lost again."
Although Al Mualim did not laugh, she did not miss the amused glint shining in his good eye. "In any case," He began, "You're both here for your next assignment. On the condition that you're both satisfied to work with one another again?" Hana did not wish to appear too eager and just nodded her head once. The Mentor continued, and Hana realised that with Altair, the Mentor was merely waiting for him to reject the idea which was why he didn't say anything. In any case, the female wasn't complaining! "Good, now that's settled. You will be travelling to Acre, there is a man there called Nazir who needs to be taken care of. The young Rafik awaits your arrival. You leave tomorrow morning."
The copper haired female, for the rest of the afternoon, sat with the old Rafik in the market to practice her reading where she informed him that she would be going to Acre on an assignment. He made her sit with him for an extra hour, and once they were finished Hana was more than happy to go home for the afternoon! She helped Rasil as much as she could and as much as he would let her, before they both returned to the house where the older man began preparing the female's favourite stew. Then after a good night's rest, Hana met Altair for their journey.
She didn't realise how excited she would be, and when Altair told her to ready the horses while he got the supplies she all but ran down the hill from the citadel and towards the stables! It took her a while to catch the mare that the Master Assassin had taken with him on the past two missions, and she realised that this was the reason why she preferred geldings. They were far less stroppy, and easier to handle!
"Now that you've finished running after my horse," Altair chuckled from the main door, moving forwards to place a bag across the pommel on the saddle of the chestnut that the female would be riding. "We can go."
The copper haired nineteen year old handed the reins over to the Master Assassin before mounting her gelding and raising an eyebrow at the unusually large bag of food that was in front of her. He knew that she loved her food, yes, but there was more there than usual! She blushed in embarrassment: Did he know she was due her monthly bleed?
But when she peered in the bag as they rode out of the stables, she couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face. She glanced up at the Master Assassin as his mare stubbornly walked in front of her own horse, "Thank you."
He glanced at her from over his shoulder, a smirk playing on his lips when he noticed she had already started eating, "I took advantage of the unattended kitchen."
Hana counted several oranges in her pack, and she pulled one out, "Would you like one?" She asked, "I have plenty."
"No," He started, "They are yours."
"Altair, I have enough for the week."
"They're yours, I know they're your favourite." He stated. Suddenly, his tone changed as he gestured to his own saddlebag, "When we stop, I'm going to test your reading. And don't think I haven't noticed your absence from the training ring. Being focused on one task doesn't give you a reason to slack off!"
A/N: So here's another update for you all considering the fact that I've been MIA for months. Please review and let me know what you think :) xx