Ezio was awakened rather rudely by a certain annoying abomination by the name of Eden. She jumped onto his bed, or, more specifically, his stomach. He groaned, and heard her laugh.
"Rise and shine!" she pealed, getting off him and flinging open the curtains.
"What the hell?" he yelled, shielding his eyes from the sunlight, barely resisting the urge to retreat further into his bed.
"Sorry, always wanted to do that!"
"Someone's in a cheerful mood this morning."
"And why not?" she asked. "It's a beautiful day. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, the grass in non-existent, and Lisa is making googly eyes at her lover. Claudia sent me to wake you up."
"She must hate me, then," he finally opened his eyes, letting them get used to the bright light. Eden was standing in front of the window, as chirpy and bright as ever. He groaned, closing his eyes again. "You're not exactly something I want to see first thing in the morning."
"Don't worry, you won't have to anymore." she shrugged, and he was irritated to see that his words had absolutely no effect on her. "Everyone was just busy, so I was the odd one out."
"Or you were just trying to cope a feel." he smirked. She rolled her eyes.
"You have nothing I haven't seen and... ahem, felt before."
"That so?"
"Yep!" she pointedly ignored his flirty voice, and he was relieved she did- it was hard to keep the seductive voice with her. The very idea made him feel nauseous. "Speaking of which, it's a shame I had to get rid of the shirt. I liked that one. Belonged to my boyfriend." she sighed, pouting slightly. He noticed she was no longer wearing he short sleeved white shirt that was stained with blood and cut up now. Now she was wearing a training tunic she must have found around the villa, caught at her waist by a belt.
"So you have a lover somewhere?" he raised an eyebrow, somehow unable to find a reason a sane man would go for this woman unless they wanted to be driven out of that sanity. She seemed to see the flow of his thoughts, frowning.
"Like I said, I can be likable. And no, I don't have a lover somewhere. Not anymore."
"What happened?"
"Oh, you know, he died." she shrugged as if telling him the weather forecast.
"Suicide?" he asked.
"No. Accident." she grimaced, her cheerfulness disappearing, and a small frown appearing on her lips. "Anyway, everyone's waiting for you in the dining room for lunch. You missed breakfast."
"Right. I'll get on that." he sighed, though the idea of getting up seemed painful at the moment.
"Come on, little assassin, there are things to be done today."
He groaned again at that stupid nickname as the girl ran out of his room. But what could he do? He had to get up anyway. It's already midday, judging by the sun.
I skipped down the stairs, nearly crashing into the one and only servant girl by the name Lisa, who I saw with a man around the villa the day before. I'm pretty sure she's not allowed to see how far she can shove her tongue down a man's throat on the job, though...
She smiled at me shyly, asking if I needed anything. I looked at her in thought for a second, unsure whether take advantage of the hospitality or tell her to get a backbone.
I did neither. After all, I guess she was actually lucky to get a job in this town. I think my mind was still on its New York setting, that's all. "Nothing." she nodded, and continued on her way, while I went outside.
Despite the sunshine, which brightened up the village considerably, it was still in a sad state of repair. I could see some ruined buildings from here, like a boarded up church, the cross leaning slightly to the side, threatening to fall on some unfortunate chap that happened to walk by. As I walked through the streets, people threw me strange looks, though not approaching me. They all seemed to be rushing somewhere, though what you could possibly be doing around this village, I'll never know.
I was looking for a tailor, but I quickly found out that the shop was empty and abandoned, spiders and rats the only residents. So instead, I headed for the armory.
The man sitting behind the counter was leaning onto the wall, probably bored out of his mind. Seeing someone approach, he perked up, but then identified me as female, and his expression fell again.
"Can I help you, Signora?"
"Yes, you can." I confirmed. "You see, I took a little scratch yesterday, and I swear, the doctors here take pleasure in torturing you. I want to make sure that doesn't happen again."
"Ezio, I have a request for you." Mario said from across the table, watching as his nephew inhaled his food. He looked up. "I want you to stay here, at the villa for a few more days."
"What? Why?"
"To train. You barely held your own against Vieri's men last night, if Eden was not around, you'd take a worse beating that that."
"Lovely. I'm getting tired of hearing her brought into every conversation around here." Ezio snapped.
"That woman is a godsend," his Uncle spoke seriously. "Rough around the edges, but she's got spirit and skill. With a bit more training, she'd be a great asset to us."
"She's also mean, sadistic, violent, and she doesn't take anything seriously," the young noble argued. "Besides, she showed up out of nowhere in strange clothes, suddenly intent on helping us. I can't say I trust her."
"That doesn't matter, we're not talking about Eden. What I was beginning to say is that I think you need some training. Please, stay, only for another week. If not for me, then for your mother and sister."
Ezio sighed, thinking it over. He barely contributed to the fight with Vieri, and ran from the guards back in Firenze. Stabbing a defenseless man was a lot easier that actually fighting someone off. His uncle was right. If he was going to protect his mother and Claudia, then he would have to actually learn how to use the blade properly. Eden was not going to be around forever, she made it clear that if they sail for Spain, she won't come, preferring to stay in Italy.
"Fine. I will stay to train."
"Wonderful! There's a training rink right in front of the villa. We can start whenever you're ready."
"Good, there you go, you're getting it now!" Mario praised as Ezio jumped away from the mercenary as he came at him with a training sword. He barely slipped away from the last hit, ducking right before it almost jammed into his neck. The mercenary did not seem to understand that this was practice, and was going full force with the blunt sword as if Ezio made a dirty comment about his much loved mother.
He didn't reply, jumped away from the sword again as it came for his side, and rolling over on the ground, jumping to his feet the next second.
"Let's take a break, I think. Brumo, I said take a break! Stop hitting him!" The man finally froze, and apologized to Ezio, holding out his hand to help him up, but the noble eyed the bear paw with a great deal of mistrust, and stood up by himself, jumping over the railing. He was breathing hard, and he has long since discarded the top layer of his armor, keeping only a light linen shirt on. Mario clapped him on the back.
"I think you can give your enemies something to think about, now! We'll resume practice tomorrow again."
"Sure... thing... Uncle..." he gasped, and heard a peal of laughter, but looking around, he didn't see the owner of it. Then he noticed Mario was looking up, and raised his eyes.
Eden was sitting on the railing above them, cross legged, her leather jacket draped beside her. She looked as if she was meditating, though that was very unlikely.
"Eden, what are you doing up there?" Mario asked, raising his voice so she would hear him. Even from here, they could see her smirk.
"Why, enjoying the show of course. Two sweaty men in a rink, beating the hell out of each other. What's not to like?" She was sarcastic. "But seriously, you could at least take your shirts off. That would make me appreciate it a whole lot more."
The residents of the Autidore villa were still surprised at the way she seemed to always speak her mind, no matter what it was, though how she delivered all of it depended on her mood, which changed, oh, say, every three seconds? Ezio didn't see much of Eden in the two days that they stayed at the villa. While he practiced with his Uncle, or dug through the library, unsure of what he was even looking for, she was exploring the town and doing god knows what else. Sometimes she simply disappeared, but always came back about an hour later, according to the servant girl, Lisa.
"You know, Eden, it wouldn't hurt for you to practice, as well," his uncle suddenly suggested, and her smile disappeared. "Have you ever used a sword?"
"No." She put on her jacket over top of the shirt that looked like it was meant for men, and jumped down, landing in a crouch. "We don't use swords back at home."
"Really? What do you use then?"
She gave a toothy grin. "That's for me to know and for you to never try to find out."
"As you wish." Mario seemed confused, and he was not the only one. Ezio looked at her with surprise as well. "But here, we do use swords, and it would be useful for you to know how to fight with one, as well."
She seemed to be thinking about it. "Well, I suppose, but let me warn you- I never even held one before. I'm not responsible for any of the damage to your property, or your niece."
"Claudia?"
"No." Mario glanced at Ezio, and then threw his head back and laughed hard at the sour look on his face.
"Then we'll start with the basics!"
Ezio looked at his Uncle with surprise. "Uncle, I know she doesn't look like one, but she's a woman."
"A woman that will kick you in your microscopic testicles if you continue that thought," she threatened, narrowing her eyes dangerously. It were the comments about her gender that made her go from light as air to threatening to tear your lungs out. One particular mercenary, who started laughing at her clothes, saying that a woman should wear dresses, and leave man's clothes alone, ended up in the doctor's shop, after tragically counting all the steps leading up to the villa with his nose. He wouldn't admit what happened, though by the way the woman always tried to hide a malicious smile every time it was brought up, no one had a doubt about what happened.
"Careful, nepote, she'll do it too!" Mario laughed, and Ezio sighed. She would. It was a line that should never be crossed unless you wish to have a death wish. "And this woman has so far proved to have more backbone than half my men. No, Brumo, not you." he hurried to say to the man as his giant face fell, nearly crushing everyone around him. Catastrophe prevented.
She sighed. "It can't hurt. But one condition." she held up a finger, and then pointed it at Ezio. "He doesn't watch."
"And what's wrong with me?" he crossed his arms.
"Well, lot's of things." she snapped, but he was taken aback by the insecure gleam in her eyes. "But in this situation, it's the fact that I won't be able to get through a drill without wanting to hit you with a cat."
"A cat?"
"Yes. A cat." she said with a perfectly straight face. And then she glanced at the man Brumo with the same fear as Ezio felt minutes ago, "And maybe I should practice with, I don't know, like a child or something first."
"So you can eat them afterward?" Ezio raised an eyebrow.
"No, because even a child can beat me in sword play," she said very seriously.
"I'm sure you can catch on quickly." Mario said. "I've seen you use those knives of yours, you're very skilled. A sword is almost the same, though a lot heavier. It's a matter of practice."
"Fine. Are we starting now, or...?"
"Sure."
She sighed, as she discarded her jacket again, and threw in onto the raining. Then she looked expectantly as Ezio, and he glared, but left.
"Well, that was..." Mario panted slightly. I did too, leaning on the hilt of the practice blade. It was lighter than what the mercenaries here used for practice, but a lot more familiar to my hand, like the handle of my favorite dagger. It look me nearly three hours to wave around with the same familiarity, though, but the Italian man was pleased with my progress. "That was certainly better than I expected, Eden. Are you sure you're not related to an assassin?"
"How should I know?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. "If my father ever was, he didn't tell me anything. And then he left, anyway."
"What man would leave his family?" he asked, seemingly finding it outrageous. I shrugged.
"Quite easily, it seems. I don't know what his problem was, really, he left us when I was fourteen. Eve, my sister, was twelve." It didn't hurt to talk about him anymore, which continued to surprise me. Someone once told me these things don't fade, but I guess they were wrong.
"And what of your mother? Was she an assassin?" he asked as he raised his sword again. I looked at it sourly, and then lifted my own. Good thing that over the years of climbing and running, I built up some muscle.
"I don't know." I shrugged again as he made a slow strike at me, which I deflected, if clumsily. "She died a year after dad left."
"Horrible." he looked sympathetic, but I just made a grimace.
"It was, but I don't dwell on it. I don't pity the dead, Mario." I said calmly as I tried my best to thrust the blade under his. He simply side stepped it. "I pity the living."
"And why is that?"
"Because at least the dead don't have to care for others. They're simply dead."
"Do you not believe in afterlife?"
I laughed bitterly. "My name is misleading. I don't have a religion. My mother didn't believe in any of the crap the priests loaded, either, but she thought the story of the Garden of Eden was really fascinating, thus mine and my sister's names."
"You speak of your sister often." I dodged a slash, not having enough time to make it slide on the sword. "Is she..."
"Dead? No, alive and well. She hates my guts though."
"Sounds like there's a story to that."
"One that I'm not sharing." I snapped, in a flash of rage, my blade made a flash through the air and hit Mario on the fingers that held the hilt of his own sword, and he nearly dropped it, hissing it pain. I didn't bother apologizing- my temper risen with the last few words. I turned away from him, and jumped out of the ring, grabbing my jacket as I did so. "I think that's enough for today."
I stormed through the manor, up the stairs to the spare bedroom I was using. I didn't have anything aside from the remains of my boyfriend's shirt at all the contents of my bag, considering I outright refused to wear the dressed Lisa brought in for me, instead taking tunics and shirts from the laundry. I changed into a simple gray cotton shirt that went down to my thigh, and sighed, sitting down on the bed, dropping my face into my hands.
While the memories of my father didn't hurt at all anymore, and the mention of my mother made me numb and stony, Eve was a thorn in my heart, that one little part of it that was still alive and bleeding. People asked me what happened between us, but I could never answer. It's not like I didn't know why she became to cold to me, it's just that I simply couldn't say it out loud, preferring to dismiss it with jokes and angry comments. It was automatic now.
I sighed heavily. I'd apologize to Mario next time I saw him- he didn't deserve this after giving me a place to stay, food to eat, and ever trying teach me sword play. I blew up, my temper overflowed, and now, I felt really bad about all of it. It hurt to talk about her like it never hurt to talk about my father, and the idea of saying the story out loud made me panic.
I stood up, and decided to go find Lisa, find out if there are any pants I could steal from the laundry as well that would actually fit me.
The interior of the manor was a lot more pleasing on the eyes than the outside. The walls were made in while marble, and huge chandeliers hung in nearly every room, and then there were different rugs on the walls, too. The main hall was bit... I don't know, empty I guess, but very grand. The bedrooms had gigantic curtains on the windows, very soft beds, and nice furniture in general. I also discovered something of an art gallery, but most of the frames were empty. When I asked Lisa about it, she said that Mario just never got around to decorating the room.
I was coming down the stairs when I heard the girl. I was about to call after her, but then I also heard a male voice, and I froze.
"Please, Dario, I'll get in trouble if they find you here!"
"But darling-"
"I'll lose my job, and-"
Without giving it another thought, I made a dash back the way I came from, the footsteps and arguing was getting louder. I wretched the door of the nearest closet open, praying that it was empty, and jumped inside, shutting the door after me.
"Well, now, fancy bumping into you here."
It was my turn to groan.
Karma's a bitch.
And I hate her.