Megan's ankle took three days to heal, only because Ezio had started another water balloon war out in the yard and she ended up having one of her episodes of tripping over nothing, but with it allowed her time to adjust more and to also spend some time by herself with the animals. She was feeling more comfortable being back at her parent's house without them there but she would still see the ghosts of family when she turned the corner of any room. It was difficult since she wanted to call out to the people or even question them about something and suddenly she would remember that they weren't there anymore. Her heart ached with the renewed knowledge of her family not there.
"Megan, what's wrong?" Leo questions when she stops the buggy at Wal-Mart on the candy aisle, staring out into space. Something just occurred to her.
"Huh, oh! It's really nothing." Megan answers shaking her head to rid herself of her revere. It was already warmer than when they had arrived, spring barely having time to awaken the plants and the trees to grow new leaves, and she was wearing a short sleeve shirt over some jeans. Leo was dressed much the same save he still had a jacket and his ever present red hat. She grins happily before reaching over and plucking it off his head. He gives her a fairly surprised look that morphed into a smile as she attempted to put it on her head much the way he wore it. "How the hell do you fix this thing?" She questions and he corrects it on her head.
"Adorable!" He exclaims and she spies the few different bags of candy he had sneaked into the buggy when she had zoned out. She grins and, when he had turned away, stuffs in a bag of mini Reese's under some bread and chips before following the painter down the aisle with a hidden but pleased smirk on her face. The two of them were shopping for dinner for the next few nights while Alex took a nap with Cassie, a newer nickname now given to the little girl from Shaun who had said it as an accident and the two oldest Assassins had taken to it quickly, and the rest went out on an excursion to do who knew what.
Megan still felt uncomfortable. It was a feeling that hung in the back of her mind, ever present and terrifying, and she didn't really know what to do. Her mind was far to active and not as distracted as it had been, especially since she had found her little girl's hair had been cut while they slept, and she wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. She was questioning what could be around her and also what could harm her and Cassie and the rest of the men.
She knew that Alex would never let anything come to harm her or Cas but she still worried. If it was her on her own she wouldn't care what happened to herself, true she would regret not being in her child's life and she would regret the chance to see her grow and answer most of the questions she would have. But if it kept her child safe she would do anything for her.
She understood the reasons her mother would do things like when she would hit the brakes at a stop light and throw her arm out to whichever child was in the passenger seat to stop them from jerking forward. Or many other things that's she could name as well, she understood the need to keep those so close to her safe at any cost. She wanted her daughter to live life completely free of trouble for as long as she was capable. Megan didn't want her to fear anything, and with the possibility of her being able to do any of what her father could she would really not have anything to fear even as far as a nuclear weapon. Hell she would probably hit a certain age and remain that way forever with no worries. Megan didn't think that was so bad. Alex would have a part of her to keep forever because unlike him, she would age and grow old and eventually die and he would have been alone.
She had to get rid of these thoughts, they made her sad when she knew he would never change and possibly never die. But he now had their daughter so he wouldn't always be alone. She would exist in the world, while she wouldn't always be by his side but she would always be around. That thought kept Megan happy and content and she really didn't have worry for the love he gave her. She knew that it was a love he had never felt for anyone but perhaps save her and his sister.
She continues on down the different aisles, grabbing the things that were needed and even allowing her companion to stick in a few extra things. But still her mind wandered and she worried and shopped and did all the things that the normal female with to much on her mind did.
She fretted.
While she was putting the items on the conveyer to be scanned did something catch her eye, it was quick and fleeting but it still caused her to pause in what she was doing to look. She swore she saw a woman standing in the midst of the crowd heading out of the building, staring out at her with a look that made Megan's skin crawl uncontrollably. She looked greasy and dirty, old and tired looking but with a brightness to her eyes that frightened Megan like none other. She felt like she knew the woman somehow but then a large crowd walked infront of the woman and she was gone.
The hairs on Megan's arms began to rise.
She hastily puts the rest of the items on the belt and then swipes her card, getting out enough cash to fill the rental up. She felt the need to get out of there as quickly as possible, if not a moment sooner. Leo gives her a puzzled look as they both put the bags in the cart, one she shakes her head at to tell him not at the moment to ask, and they then head to the rental to put the groceries away. Once they were doing that does Leo ask the question that was on his mind.
"You're scared again, why?"
She pauses for a heartbeat in lifting up two bags, eyes widening momentarily, before she hands them to him to put in the middle seats and floor. "I think that… I'm… being followed." She answers, eyes darting slightly before returning to her work. Leo's own eyes darken and he glances around quickly but still taking in the surroundings.
"How do you..?"
"Don't tell Alex. In fact, don't tell any of the guys. It's just a suspicion and not a fact. If it is true, then," she looks him in the eyes, her blue-green orbs steely and determined, "I'll tell them myself."
Leo frowns heavily. He did not enjoy keeping a secret from his friends. "You must tell them soon, for not only your sake but for Cassie and ours. We want to keep the two of you safe." He tells her as she drops the buggy off in the corral.
"I know…" She answers with a heavy sigh. He rolls his eyes at her and pulls her into a hug, one filled with warmth and love. She was his little sister, a woman he loved and didn't want to see hurt. Cascade was his niece, the little girl only months old and he did not wish to see her grow up without this woman's influence. He had seen enough of that back in Florence for the motherless children and it caused his heart to ache.
"Then do not hesitate." He says when he releases her and she gives him one of her brilliant smiles. They had been rare now, since they had left Washington, and it worried them. They had all understood when she was pregnant of her unhappiness and once Cascade had been born the smiles had returned and all was right in the world. But it disappeared once the house had been broken into while they were all inside and asleep. And that alone caused grief, the Assassins having been trained to notice everything and to always be on their toes. That changed the more they were around Megan, she was comfortable and relaxing and allowed them to be more than just killers but human beings. Even Alex had found his humanity once more.
Now they all felt as if they had failed her.
"I won't. I just don't think that it wise to cause worry if there is none." She was right but if she told them they would also be on the lookout for anything suspicious. She sighs and runs a hand through her hair before giving a short laugh. "Come on, those bottomless pits are probably wondering where we are or if we just ran off into the sunset laughing our asses off."
Leo gains a smile she would call down right evil, his baby blues darkening to a midnight like color. "That would be just terrible now wouldn't it?"
Megan's smile mirrored his.
"Uh, guys. There's a note on the door…" Desmond calls out as he plucks the piece of paper off the wooden surface and glances down at the pile of bags before reading the note. It was in Megan's eligible writing and the end was of Leonardo's elegant scrawl. Altair, Malik, Ezio, and Connor all come over to the front door from the living room, grabbing bags and taking them into the kitchen.
"They'll be back." Ezio says, patting the young descendent on the back before grabbing his bags and walking away. Desmond looks down to find the ground empty and he just shrugs and closes the door before following them. While doing so he reads the note and stops in his tracks, a grin spreading across his face.
"Megan's renounced her love for Alex."
The men stop in putting away the groceries, Shaun now having joined them, to give him their undivided attention. Desmond fights the laughter wanting to well up.
"She said that she has found her true love with Leonardo and they've happily run off to Mexico to enjoy tequila drinks on the white sandy beaches."
A snort comes from behind him. He turns enough to see a half asleep Alex standing with Cassie curled up against his chest in a pink fleece blanket. "I call bull-"
"You even think of finishing that sentence and you will be sleeping on the couch." Says a voice behind him, a hardened edge lilting the tone. Alex freezes up and slowly turns around, knowing full well that she was being serious. He gives a slightly nervous chuckle before handing the little girl off to her mother and giving the woman in question a tender kiss.
"You're… not really running off are you?" Alex can't help but question her once the other begin to put things away once more, Leo having walked in and began helping. A single eyebrow crawls delicately up towards her hairline.
"You do realize he's gay, yeah? I mean, best girlfriend a girl can have is a gay guy." She answers and he looks behind himself for a split second to look at the famous painter. She uses this time to practice one of the funner skills they had been teaching her before she got pregnant, she quietly turns and walks away to the bedroom. When Alex turns back around to ask her if she was sure the woman in question had disappeared. He looks around quickly before rolling his eyes and heading to their room as he knew she would be.
He stands in the door way, watching as she changes out of her 'street clothes' and into pajamas. On the bed was Cas, still bundled up and now propped up by pillows, gurgling and giggling happily when Megan turns around to make faces at her. He stifles his own laughter when the little girl begins to squeal in earnest, even reaching out for her mother. He sees Megan's eyes cut to him and she gives him a quick wink before moving the blanket and pushing the shirt up Cassie was wearing to give her a raspberry. The noise Cassie made was so loud he swore the glass cracked a little.
Megan laughs and gives her an eskimo kiss before giving her one on her forehead and standing. She had a different shirt on but no bottoms yet though they were sitting out on the bed beside Cas. Alex takes a few steps into the room and closes the door behind him before walking over and sitting down on the bed beside his daughter. Megan hastily puts on the black pants, tying them loosely on her hips. She wore a simple silvery gray tank top over it, the straps of her bra showing. He could see how tired she was, the dark rings around her eyes. She was going all the time, sleep evading her easily. At night when Cassie would cry, he would go to get up to find that Megan already had control of the situation. He didn't know if it was because she just slept light now or if she didn't sleep at all anymore.
"Get a nap, I've got her."
Megan blinks a few times. "What?"
"You're tired, I can see it. Get some sleep. Don't worry about Cassie, I can take care of her." Megan's eyebrows rise momentarily before she gives him a look that said she didn't believe him. "I took care of her today."
"The two of you were asleep."
"She woke up 15 minutes after you left."
"Touché." Megan sits opposite of him but still beside Cassie. She fiddles with the little girl's hair, attempting to pat down a few wild curls. "It's just that.. I'm worried. This is, what's happened, only does so in a book. I mean, what if she comes back?"
"How do you know that the person is a she?"
Megan swallows a lump. "Just a feeling, I can't really explain it."
Alex breathes out slowly. "She won't. We didn't leave a paper trail, no forwarding address for the present time. We're ghosts right now." He answers her and she could really only agree with him on that. They were off the grid, so to speak. Megan hadn't turned on her cell phone in days, and the internet they used was purely to find a restaurant or a certain store she didn't know of. But she still had that feeling, now having grown since the encounter at the store. But she sighs, nodding her head in agreement.
"Alright, alright. I'll take a nap. She better not have purple hair when I wake up." Megan chides him.
"I make no promises for the rest of them." He gives her a quick kiss and picks up Cassie, after Megan gives her one more kiss on the head. She then clambers up to the head of the bed and under the blankets, making herself a cocoon from the pillows. She was out moments after her head hit the pillow. Alex exits the room and goes into the living room, taking the vacated recliner that was old and worn and possibly one of the most comfortable things he had ever sat in. Cassie squeals happily, now surrounded by the goofy men who loved to make her laugh. Her daddy did the same but mommy was the best. Mommy was sleepy though so she couldn't play with her right now.
"M-mo-mommy." Everyone freezes then looks over to the little girl who giggles happily.
"D-did she just..?"
Alex points to Desmond. "Not. A. Word." Desmond throws his hands up. "If Megan knew, she would be pissed."
"She talked."
Alex balks, nearly dropping his fork when she announces that coming out of their room. The men share a quick glance before looking at her.
"What did she say?" Alex questions her, turning around to see her. She had a flat look on her face.
She waits a beat before answering. "Pissed."
Alex drops his fork while Desmond, Connor, and Ezio choke on the drink they had all just taken; Altair and Malik look away from her, and Leo and Shaun give a dry, nervous chuckle.
"What did I say about cursing?" And then the floodgates open, each man pointing to one or another telling of when they had said something when she wasn't around. She holds up one hand and all noise stops. "I don't care. I do care that she just said a word I told all of you I did not want to hear being said at any point in time while she was awake. She is smart, ahead of the rest in her age group." Alex and her share a glance at this. They had already figured out that there were developmental milestones she was hitting far to early and they could only tack that to her being half of what Alex was. "But this is ridiculous, I asked all of you not to do something and you do it anyways when I'm not around."
"We are sorry." Ezio says as he hangs his head. Megan releases a frustrated sigh.
"It's alright just no more please. Bad enough I'm going to have to put this in her book." She responds turning to go back into the room. Alex panics a bit.
"Err, she uh," Megan turns back to face him, "said mommy.. earlier. While you were napping." Megan blinks slowly once and he knew that there was going to be a talk happening later.
"Well, better than pissed.." And she walked off back to the room. Alex resists the urge to drop his head to the table lest he damage it. In fact, the less he destroys before their talk the better.
"And you were worried that we were going to tell?"
"Shut up Desmond."
Megan eventually emerged from the room with not only the book of firsts but her computer tucked under one arm and Cascade held to her chest with the other. A pen was clipped onto one of the pages of the book and she sets down the two things in order to put Cascade in her bouncer. The little girl makes happy noises, babbling in baby language. Alex sits down beside her and she turns to him with a smile before grabbing the book.
"What else has she done you haven't told me about." He fills her in on only the few other things she had done and then she puts the book away to get her laptop. She relaxes against him while the rest file into the living room, Ezio and Desmond playing with Cassie and Malik filching the remote before Altair could get it. She pulls up her internet and signs into her e-mail, prepared for the few junk messages that always popped up. What she wasn't prepared for was the anonymous e-mails with no subject. Perplexed she opens one and finds the same words repeated.
Kill the Hydra, Save the Princess.
She opens another one finding the same thing. Unnerved she begins to delete them but it seemed never ending. "Al-Alex, look." She turns the computer towards him and his eyes harden.
"Close the account."
"What?"
"Close it. Whoever it is knows your e-mail, so close it." He shares a look with Shaun who nods.
"Had a feeling this would happen. Here, hand me the laptop." Megan does so, after copy and pasting the addresses she needed to a document. The creepy feeling she had was growing. She glances out to the window wondering just what she had done to have someone think this was funny.
"Has this happened before?" Alex questions and she shakes her head in the negative, the sound of keys being clicked in rapid succession background noise.
"No that's why it's freaking me out. Right now, I don't think technology is going to be my friend anymore for a while." She allows herself to be pulled against his side, his way of comforting her by letting her mold herself to his person. She was still fragile, physically weak but mentally she was strong though this was now taking its toll on her; breaking down her walls and squirming into the nooks and crannies causing her worry. He knew that only so much would be able to be handled by her before she did break completely and he didn't want that to happen.
"Done. Whoever sent this will be receiving a nasty little surprise the next time they turn on their computer." Shaun says, passing back the laptop with a mischievous smirk on his face. Megan doesn't question him on what exactly that meant but none-the-less takes back the machine, closing the lid and setting it aside on the coffee table. She returns to her previous position, watching her daughter. She wouldn't be working on her book now. All she could think of now was how easy it would be to find someone in this day and age. Cameras everywhere, cell phones, internet; all so easy to break past and use to your own advantage if you put enough time and thought into what you were doing. Or you could even pay someone to do so for you, to keep your theoretical hands clean.
"Thanks Shaun." She whispers quietly and he nods. This was turning dangerous for the woman and none of them wanted to see her hurt.
Ezio looks around, finding the depressed atmosphere a little stifling. He understood the dangers that had now presented itself to them and that they had to take them seriously but, as he looks at the woman who had taken them in without question two years ago who had given them a home and allowed them to be something other than what they had always been, he finds that something needed to be done to take her mind off of this. He shares a glance with Desmond and Connor. The Native was beginning to understand why they did some of the things they did and was willing to help them some of the time. This just happened to be one of them.
"OW!" Connor says, launching into a string of words in Mohawk Megan was sure could only be curses and parentage at both Ezio and Desmond. The both of them had frogged the man in both arms, grinning like a pair of loons afterwards. Megan watches this exchange as Ezio joins in Italian, some of which she understood and giggled at. Desmond sat there, still grinning but unable to comprehend what was being said by Connor. She had heard him speaking to Ezio in Italian once so she knew he knew what the other was saying, she even had a suspicion that he could also speak Arabic if he wanted to.
"You do realize that Ezio, your like his great grandfather. And Connor, the same goes for you with Desmond." Both men stop talking quickly, that quirk of information having escaped them for the moment. Then they frown heavily at one another turning to Desmond.
"This is your fault."
"How is it my fault!? I didn't ask that you guys breed in order for me to exist." Desmond announces loudly, looking between the two of them. He then looks over to Altair and points. "He's the starting point for our messed up family, blame him."
Alright guys, new chapter is out! WHOOT! Sorry it took so long to get it out. Between getting my shit together for work and then also having gotten sick for a week, it was stressful. But now I'm feeling much better and, while a bit difficult to stay up at night (mostly on my breaks when I'm working) I'm enjoying working again. I really am a night owl anyways.
So, on to the reviews.
Raych: Yea Megan and I agree with you. But she does want to be in on the action a little too. XD
Hack: Oh yes he did, and I'm afraid that Ezio had to agree with him. He did a stupid thing and got punished.
The Wicked Truth89: I hope your enjoying the story!
And for faves and follows.
People having added me to their favorites:
Raych and The Wicked Truth89. YAY!
People now following the story:
The Wicked Truth89. THANK YOU!
Now for the next chapter on coming out, working on it right now. Just give me a bit more time to get used to the schedule they have me on. Its actually really exhausting work to do so late at night. But as always, please fave, follow, review. You can also find me on Skype, Twitter, Tumblr, and if you have a playstation account you can find me under the name Vynx_Merx. Till the next chapter!