"Ngh…b-bastard…" My softly uttered curse is met with light, affectionate nips to my throat. I gasp, my hands clenching at the other's robes as a four-fingered hand works its way into my pants.

I shove at the other novice, a glare narrowing my lids. "Altair, no. Not now."

Altair frowns, his palms flat against the building's wall, making the alley way I was hastily shoved into seem even smaller. He presses his lips to the shell of my ear, biting lightly on the lobe; I hiss softly and shove him away again. "I-I have to see Hassan off," Golden eyes lock with mine, and a light coloured eye brow is risen. "He's leaving for a mission today, remember?"

The other novice sighs loudly, moving back from my flushing body. I right my robes again, smoothing out the rumpled cloth, earning a light chuckle from my rival/whatever-we-are. I glare up at him, only to have Altair give me a small grin. "You primp like a woman, Malik."

I growl and give his stomach a solid punch, pushing around his doubled-over form.

"And please please watch out for Kadar." Hassan sighs, placing a hand on top of my head.

I laugh, glancing down at our youngest brother, who pouts lightly before tightly hugging the older male. Hassan leans down, hugging the younger boy back, pressing a small kiss on the thirteen-year-old's forehead.

Kadar blushes and wipes at the spot, smiling lightly. "I'm not a little kid anymore, Hassan!" He complains, even though all three of us know he loves the attention.

Hassan turns back to me, tightly hugging me; I notice that I'm as tall as he is, and Kadar is only a few inches shorter than both of us. "Safety and peace, brother." I whisper, feeling the hot burn of tears behind my eyes. I blink, confused and give Hassan a smile when he raises an eyebrow at me.

Giving us both a last light peck, Hassan turns toward the gate, throwing his grey hood over his head. Azim waits for him at the large wooden opening; he lifts a hand toward us as they straddle their horses.

Kadar sighs softly beside me, and we turn to walk back to the large fortress where our training awaits. "Brother, I have a bad feeling about this…" The younger whispers, his smaller hand finding mine, almost like the first time he showed me around Masyaf.

I gulp, but give his hand a reassuring squeeze. "I'm sure it's nothing, Kadar…" I don't want to tell him that I have the same feelings.

A few months later, I sit by myself in the master's extensive library. I run my finger over the crisp pages, teeth working my bottom lip as I translated the words from French to Arabic.

Something tickles my cheek, but I bat it away, annoyed; the tickling persists, so I turn mouth open to snap at the person. I snort softly, turning back to the documents. "Of course it would be you."

Altair sits beside me, turning the quill around in his nimble fingers. He rests his chin on his hand, looking down at the papers strewn about the table top. "You don't seem too surprised."

I dip my quill tip into the inkwell, scratching out a short sentence. "Only you would be foolish enough to annoy me while I'm working." I flicker my eyes toward him, noticing his bored expression. "Something that you should be doing."

Altair hums, leaning back in the wooden chair, cracking his knuckles on the table-top. He looks up at the high-vaulted ceiling, then back to me. "I don't see why we need to read century old documents to kill a man."

I snort and poke his nose with the feathered end of my quill. "You're just lazy."

Altair opens his mouth to retort, but the sound of shouting breaks both of our attention; we move to peer around the thick bookcases, watching as a bloodied man runs into the library.

My brows furrow, mouth opening lightly as I try think if I've seen this man before.

The man doubles over, gulping down air while Al Mualim briskly moves toward him. The assassin pulls down his hood, and I bite back a gasp of surprise when Azim's stricken face meets my gaze.

Al Mualim's face looks grim; he clasps his hands behind his back, looking down his nose at the bloodied man. "…was the mission successful?"

Azim winces lightly, reaching into the folds of his robe to produce a red stained feather. "We…we were attacked on the trip back…" I notice that he's holding his side, the crimson leaking through his fingers. "We fought them off as best as we could, but…"

My eyes snap up to the older man's face as he licks his lips; my heart pounds heavily inside my chest, and I feel my pulse in my ears. "Hassan didn't make it."

I stare as the master sighs softly, a hand going up to stroke his graying beard. "That is…unfortunate…"

My back hits Altair, and I turn to him, not realizing that tears are running down my face. His expression is that of shock, but he thins his mouth when he looks down at me. "I-I have t-to leave…" I gulp down a sob, pushing away from the other novice, and run out of the library.

Kadar sobs loudly, clutching my robes tightly in his small hands. His tears soak through the rough fabric, and his frame shakes. I hug him, swallowing my own tears, trying to be strong for him; I will mourn in private.

We sit in the middle of the sitting room, the dying light of day casting long shadows over our huddled forms.

Kadar pulls back, wiping snot from his nose with the back of his hand. His blue eyes are blood-shot, and his mouth is red from him biting down to stifle his sobs. "W-will…Azim b-be okay?"

I let a soft sigh roll from my lips, swallowing down the bubble of tears that threaten to break down my wall of 'strength'. "He's in the hospital ward."

Kadar stands shakily, sniffing loudly and clenching his hands into fists. "I-I'm going to see if he's okay." I open my mouth to protest, but the younger boy runs out before I can say anything.

I don't move for a few minutes; I stare at nothing, until my hands begin to shake in my lap. A loud wail rips from my throat, and I double over, clenching my hair as fat tears spill from my eyes.

I shudder, hiccupping while I stand. My body sways lightly, but I right myself, stepping out of the house.

My tears fall silently while I bite the inside of my mouth to keep from sobbing. I allow my legs to take me wherever, until I find myself standing outside of Altair's door.

I stare blankly at the wood, my head weighing the possibilities of asking for his company. I swallow thickly, knowing that I don't want to be alone.

My knuckles rap on the door, and after waiting for a few moments, I'm afraid he didn't hear it. I lift my hand to try again, but the door opens to reveal the other novice, obviously getting ready for bed.

"Malik?" Altair seems surprised; he blinks, lifting a hand to touch the still moist tear tracks running down my face.

"Please…" I'm shocked at how hoarse my voice sounds. "Can I…can I come in?"

Altair moves out of the way so I can slide between him and the door. I take in my surroundings, noting how sparsely decorated the room is.

A bed sits in the corner, a chest of (what I assume to be) clothes is shoved against the opposite wall. Weapons lay on top of the chest, and I glance toward the other boy's hand and see that his hidden blade is removed.

I sit on the bed, my arms tightly folded around me. Altair stands awkwardly by the door, staring down at me with a small frown on his lips. I scoff lightly, flickering my eyes away from his gaze.

"Malik," Altair leans in front of me, resting his hands on either side of my lap. "Why are you here? Where's Kadar?" A finger swipes away a tear.

I remain silent, my mouth pursed and tears rolling down my face. Altair sighs, leaning up to kiss both of my cheeks. I wrap my arms around his neck, burying my face into his shoulder. I hear him grunt at the force of my hold, but soon I feel hands flatten against my back.

"Altair," I shiver against his body, liking the warmth given to me. "Please, brother, I don't…I don't want to be alone."

I pull back, staring at the other boy's confused face, before crushing our lips together, my fingers weaving through his short hair. Altair pulls back, holding me by my shoulders; he searches my watery eyes, a light flush covering his cheeks.

I growl lightly, my hands cupping his face, pulling his lips back onto mine. My tongue runs across his scarred mouth, begging for him to return the kiss; with a soft sigh, he finally does, moulding our lips together.

Our tongues wrap around each other, dancing inside one another's mouth. A small sob works its way from my body, and I realize I'm still crying. Altair pulls away from my mouth to plant small kisses on the tear tracks. He flicks his tongue over the skin to lick them away, and I blush, holding him tighter to me.

My robes are clumsily pushed off, the other novice barely running his lips against the skin of my neck. I squirm, feeling my arousal press against my loose-fitting pants.

Altair stops at the lip of my pants, his eyes flickering up to mine in embarrassment. He bites the corner of his mouth, and I gulp lightly. "Go on." I breathe, watching as his fingers delicately curl over the fabric.

Altair lets out an unsteady breath, looking anywhere but my exposed form beneath him. I wiggle lightly, embarrassed and awkward.

He glances up at me before leaning down, kissing my slightly protruding hip bones. His fingers dance over my thighs, skittering around the base of my shaft, causing my breath to hitch.

Altair sighs softly against my skin, moving his head to give an experimental kiss to the head of my sex. I moan loudly, eyes going wide while my hips buck involuntarily; I bite down on my knuckles, hearing Altair chuckle lowly at my embarrassment. "Sh-shut up." I whisper, toes curling as he places another butterfly kiss on the head.

I groan, rolling my hips as he takes my shaft into his mouth. I clench at the wool blanket underneath me, sighing and groaning as my sex is clumsily sucked. I feel the pleasure curl in my gut, causing me to gasp and buck my hips.

"A-Altair…" I gasp, coming inside is mouth, lazily thrusting until I let a loud sigh fall from my mouth.

Altair pulls his mouth from my sex with a soft pop, licking away the cum at the corner of his lips. I stare up at him, my breathing slowing down; Altair leans over me, planting a small kiss on my forehead. "Goodnight, Malik."

His arms wrap around my waist, pulling my naked body close to his still aroused form. "What…what about you?" My eyes flutter closed when Altair buries his nose into the crook of my neck.

"Goodnight, Malik."

Ffffff, I dunno how I feel about this one…

I FUCKING KILLED OF HASSAN (crazy laughter)

Also, THANK YOU to all the reviews! I love you guys!