All Assassin's Creed II characters © Ubisoft
All OCs © me

Many thanks to my wonderful betas MJE92 and La Bella Figura for meticulously poking through these 20 pages to help me polish it up. :)

To say that Florence was in disarray after the Pazzi's attack was an understatement. Riots continued for three days until Lorenzo de' Medici's forces were finally able to subdue the uprising. Giovanni, Federico, Ezio, and I had been asked to stay in Florence by Lorenzo so he could thank us properly for what we had done. However, I don't think he intended the clean up to take three whole days.

Ezio had escaped his fights with minor injuries, but Federico had taken an arrow to the back of his left shoulder. It took Giovanni over five minutes to pull the barbed arrowhead out.

"Now I know how you felt." Federico half joked to me even as sweat beaded on his pale face as the sharp point finally slipped free.

I shook my head as I pressed clean bandages to the bleeding puncture wound. "Mine wasn't this bad."

We stayed at Paola's as the charged climate dissipated, but all of us were itching to leave. Federico's wedding was approaching rapidly, Giovanni wanted to discuss our next move against the Templars with Mario, Ezio was still very sore over being dumped flat on his butt by Christina, and I just wanted to get home…and I missed Storm. That horse was probably going crazy from being stuck in a small stall for so long.

Finally, we received a summons from Lorenzo to meet him on the Ponte Vecchio the morning of the fourth day. We said our goodbyes to Paola and left for the bridge, each of us arriving from different directions so as not to arouse too much suspicion. I was rather surprised to see Lorenzo all by himself when we showed up, especially after he had nearly been killed. For his injured state, he looked very well. Once we were all gathered, Lorenzo looked out over the river.

"When I was six years old, I fell into the Armo. I soon found myself drifting down into darkness, and was certain my life was over. Instead, I woke to the sound of my mother weeping. At her side stood a stranger, soaking wet. My mother explained that he had saved me from drowning, and so began a long and prosperous relationship between two families." He turned to us with a smile. "Yours and mine."

All eyes went to Giovanni, who looked quite embarrassed for once.

"Must you tell that story, Lorenzo?" He muttered.

Lorenzo merely chuckled. "It seems only fair that your children know. I have some news of Jacopo de' Pazzi, though it is not the news you wish to hear. He escaped before we could arrest him."

"Do you have any leads?" Giovanni asked, looking relieved that the subject was off his heroic actions of the past.

Lorenzo shook his head. "No, they've hidden themselves well."

"They?" Federico asked, wincing a little as he rolled his shoulder.

"Jacopo was not the only conspirator to escape, I'm afraid."

Federico, Ezio, and I exchanged glances, remembering the party of men at the secret meeting we had listened in on.

"Do you have any names?" Ezio inquired.

"Antonio Maffei, Archbishop Francesco Salviati, Stefano de Bagnone, and Bernardo Baroncelli." Lorenzo handed Giovanni a list, and while the names meant little to me, it was clear by the dark look on Giovanni's face that he knew them all.

Lorenzo wasn't through with us, though. He had gifts for all of us, outside of a very generous monetary reward, as thanks for saving his life and city. Ezio and Federico were informed that new armor was waiting for them at the blacksmith, ready to be fitted for each of them. I was given a top-notch bow, and a quiver-full of the finest arrows Florence's blacksmiths could offer, each decorated with white and red fletching. For Giovanni, Lorenzo had a Codex page that had been salvaged from the Pazzi home, and news that the Auditore name had been cleared of all charges and accusations.

"I do have one final request of you, Giovanni," Lorenzo said. "When you deal with these men, please, inform me."

Giovanni nodded. "Grazie mille, Lorenzo."

"No, thank you, my friend. Firenze is in your debt. Che il Signore ci protegga." (God save us all)

Once Lorenzo left, Giovanni turned to us with nothing short of a big grin on his face. "Well, it would seem that we have more time to spend in Florence. Kiara, I believe that Leonardo would be very interested in looking at this page. Would you care to join me while the boys have their armor fitted?"

"Absolutely."

Federico and Ezio hurried off to the blacksmith's as Giovanni and I made the short trip to Leonardo's. The painter must have seen us coming because I didn't even get a chance to knock before the door was thrown open and I found myself caught in a near frantic bear hug.

"Kiara! Thank God you're alright! When I heard about the Medici and the Pazzi, I feared the worst."

I gave a slightly strained chuckle. "Losing faith in us already, Leo?"

Even though my little jab was meant as a joke, Leonardo began to stammer as he stepped back.

"No! Of course not! It's just that…with the Pazzi causing so much trouble – and I knew you three were looking for them – I was—"

"I was joking, Leonardo." I chuckled again as I patted his arm.

The inventor looked relieved and slightly embarrassed even though he returned my smile. "Oh, of course. I have heard rumors of strange, hooded people who saved His Magnificence and stopped the rebellion. It would seem that you are becoming quite famous. Ser Giovanni, pardon my manners, how are you?"

"As good as can be, I suppose. I see it didn't take you two long to become friends."

Leonardo ushered us inside. "Well, I find this young lady a most interesting individual. You couldn't have picked a better person to adopt into your family."

Giovanni smiled warmly at me. "I agree."

I couldn't help but flush a little. "The page, remember?"

"Ah, yes." Giovanni pulled out the parchment for Leonardo to see.

"Ha! Another one!" Leo cackled with glee as he took the Codex page and rolled it out on his table. I could almost hear the gears turning in his head and wondered just how fast his mind really worked. "Aha, I see. This won't take long at all; it's a similar cipher to the last page you brought me."

Leonardo hurried to a back room and returned with his notes from last time and a fresh page for new ones. Giovanni peered over Leo's shoulder as the man worked.

"Another blade design?" Giovanni asked after a few minutes.

"Indeed, one for delivering poison to be exact."

"Does that involve a separate blade?" I asked, moving over to see the page better.

Leo shook his head. "Hardly, all that's needed is to hollow out a small reservoir of sorts in one of your current blades to hold the substance."

"This would be very beneficial to you, Kiara." Giovanni said. "Can you prepare the blade now, Leonardo?"

"Of course, it won't take long. The tricky part will be creating this reservoir without compromising the structural integrity of the blade."

By this point I was already undoing the straps of my unarmored bracer. "I trust you, Leo. Do what you have to."

The inventor eagerly took the bracer. "Make yourselves comfortable, and there's some food in the kitchen if either of you are hungry."

"We may just take you up on that offer, Leonardo," Giovanni replied, and my stomach agreed with him. It had been a while since any of us had eaten.

As Leo began to disassemble the bracer, Giovanni and I made a beeline for the kitchen. We found some bread, cheese, and even a little fruit to snack on while we waited. When we came back into the workshop area, Leo had the blade removed and was taking a tiny chisel to it. I pulled up a chair and watched as he ever so carefully etched out a long, narrow hollow along the center line of the blade. I was so caught up in what he was doing that I hardly dared to breathe as he continued to make the hollow deeper and deeper until, with one final tap of the small hammer, the process was complete.

"There you are, my young friend," Leonardo said as he handed the small blade to me for inspection.

"You have very steady hands, Leo," I commented as I looked at the perfectly straight etching.

Looking very pleased, Leonardo took back the blade so he could reattach it to the bracer. There was a knock at the door and a moment later Ezio and Federico stepped in, each now wearing a flexible chest guard, pauldrons on each shoulder, improved vambraces on the armored bracers, and greaves on their boots. I had to admit, both of them looked even more formidable than they had before and Giovanni was quite pleased with the result.

"I'm very envious," He stated as he checked Ezio's armor. "There was no such armor like this that I could use when I was your age. I expect that Mario will make you train with all of that until you two are used to the weight."

"It's not that heavy, padre," Federico pointed out.

Giovanni chuckled. "You won't think the same when Mario makes you climb Monteriggioni's battlements again and again."

There was a tap on my shoulder and I turned to see Leonardo holding my bracer and a small vial.

"I almost put a bit of poison in the blade for you, but I decided against it seeing as how I doubt you'll need it any time soon. Notice that I put the reservoir on the underside of the blade, that way your hand won't come into contact with the poison on accident."

"That's very relieving, actually," I said as I strapped the bracer back on.

"Indeed, especially with this." Leo motioned to the small vial he held. "This oil was derived from Monkshood, commonly known as Wolfsbane, a very poisonous plant found in the mountains. I doubt it would take very much to make the victim at least very ill, unfortunately it is not a fast acting poison, but it is very reliable. Be very cautious when you fill the reservoir, my understanding is that the toxin can be absorbed through the skin."

"And you know all this because…?" I asked as I took the vial.

"I've studied it thoroughly," Leonardo answered rather sheepishly. "I'm afraid I have a rather morbid curiosity for such things."

By this point the others had gathered and were listening intently.

"What's all this about poison?" Ezio asked.

"Leonardo found a method in the Codex page to put poison in the hidden blades. He's just finished working on Kiara's."

"Claws with a bite," Federico observed jokingly, to which I just rolled my eyes.

"If you four are willing to stay a bit longer, I could prepare some of the other blades," Leonardo offered hopefully.

"That is very generous of you, Leonardo," Giovanni said. "But I'm afraid that we must leave for Monteriggioni now if we are to arrive before dark. I assume that what you did can be replicated by a blacksmith?"

Leo nodded. "A blacksmith would most likely do a better job than I. Oh, and if you run out of that, you can always visit a doctor."

"Poison from a doctor?" Federico asked.

"In high enough concentrations, that which cures can also kill," Leonardo replied.

We paid Leo for his time, said our goodbyes, and headed for the gates of Florence, only stopping to buy a little food for our journey home. We were almost out when we ran into none other than La Volpe.

"Leaving so soon?" The thief lord asked, amused.

"I'm afraid so, someone has a wedding to attend to." Giovanni replied good-naturedly, causing Federico to shuffle a little.

"So I've heard. Here, consider this a wedding gift."

He handed Federico something heavy and circular in a drawstring bag. Federico opened the bag and his mouth fell open as he pulled out another Assassin seal.

"Where on earth did you find this?"

Volpe smiled a small, but knowing smile. "In the Duomo, many years ago."

"You went into the church to –" Giovanni began, but interrupted himself. "Wait, forget it. I do not wish to know."

"Very wise, Giovanni, very wise. Good fortune to all of you. I trust we will meet again."

After our surprise visit from La Volpe, it was midmorning by the time we reached the stables and it would be well after dark by the time we made it back to Monteriggioni. The stable boy was very relieved to see us, and I knew why. Storm was nearly unmanageable as he was finally led out of the stable, and I gave the boy a few extra florins for having to put up with such a nuisance. Storm continued to prance around after he had been handed back to me, and I had to give a sharp tug on the reigns to get his attention.

"Behave," I warned as I climbed up into the saddle.

However, all the horses were antsy as we started down the road, and it didn't take long for Giovanni to suggest a race to let the big animals work off their extra energy.

"But Kiara always wins," Ezio complained. "She doesn't weigh a thing and that horse is fast enough to be put in the races."

"Seeing as how you two outmatch her in nearly every other aspect, I should think she deserves to have something, sí?" Giovanni replied with a twinkle in his eye.

Ezio thought about it, and then gave a resigned sigh. "I suppose."

I grinned and secured the arrows in my quiver so they wouldn't fly out. We lined our jittery horses up in a ragged line and Giovanni gave us to the count of three.

"One. Two. Three!"

Storm gave such a massive leap forward that I almost had to grab the saddle to keep from falling off. His long legs ate up the distance and it didn't take long before we left the others behind. I let him have his head and allowed him to run as long as he pleased. I settled deeper into a crouched position and just enjoyed the ride.

We actually made really good time and arrived back at Monteriggioni not long after the sun had set. Storm was very satisfied by this point and didn't pull any of his normal shenanigans as he was led to his stall for a good dinner and grooming. Once he was settled and happily munching on his food, I let the stables, looking forward to a good meal of my own.

The four of us trudged up the villa stairs, weary but victorious, and were met by relieved family at the top. As I was hugged by everyone, I suddenly found myself a little teary-eyed. Coming home to a whole, loving family was something that would never lose its significance for me. As Maria hugged me, I couldn't help but hang on to her for just a moment.

"It's so good to be home," I said softly and not without some emotion.

I think Maria understood exactly where I was coming from because she gave me an extra squeeze. "And it is so good to have you back, my darling."

As Maria moved on to Ezio and I tried not to make a show of quickly swiping at my eyes, I saw Claudia held tightly in the arms of her father, her face buried against Giovanni's shoulder.

"Papá…" She whispered.

"Shh," Giovanni soothed. "We are all here, and we are alright."

"I'm sorry for being such a brat about all this."

Giovanni chuckled and patted her back. "There is no need to apologize."

A firm hand landingon my shoulder nearly made me jump and I turned to see Mario grinning down at me.

"Do I not get a hug from my adopted niece?"

I giggled and threw my arms around his rather paunchy middle. Mario loved a good fight, but he loved good food and drink even more and, as a result, he packed around a few more pounds than his younger brother. Giovanni often teased Mario about his weight, to which the older sibling would wave him off and good-naturedly blame Maria's cooking. Even though Mario may not have been in the best shape, he was still as strong as an ox and I found myself nearly lifted off my feet as he hugged me back.

Once I was flatfooted again, Mario noticed my new arrows. "What do we have here?"

I pulled an arrow out and showed it to him. He carefully fingered the sharp point and then looked down the shaft.

"These are excellently made, where did you get them?"

"From Lorenzo de' Medici, as a thank you gift."

Mario gave a rumbling sound of approval. "I assume Lorenzo had them use the Assassin colors in the fletching on purpose." He handed the arrow back to me with a grin. "We may have to continue that; it's very striking."

Amelia found herself hanging back by the villa entrance as the Auditore family reunited. For some reason, she suddenly felt like an outsider. They were all so close, even Kiara seemed more like an actual sibling than an adopted one.

"Amelia."

The young woman's attention was drawn away from the happy group to the man walking towards her. Federico's hood was down, his shaggy hair tousled, and his hazel eyes shining as they seemed to do whenever they were on her. Once he was within reach, he held his hand out to her in a warm, beckoning gesture. Without even thinking about it, Amelia put her hand in his, Federico's calloused fingers closing around hers and lifting them to his lips.

"Why are you over here, cara?" He asked.

"I didn't want to intrude," Amelia confessed.

Federico chuckled and leaned forward to kiss her forehead. "Nonsense, you are part of this family. We all love you, I love you."

Amelia smiled brilliantly and took a small step back to take in Federico's appearance. The armor was certainly new, but a big relief to her as well. In fact, Amelia wasn't about to deny that her man in armor was an appealing sight. She was reminded that Federico was indeed a strong, independent young man, very capable of protecting her and their future children.

Amelia traced the beveled edge of the chest plate with her finger. "Is it true that you four saved the life of Lorenzo de' Medici?"

"Indeed, and he has requested that we hunt down the rest of the Pazzi conspirators."

"How long will that take?"

"Non lo so. However, I believe we have a wedding to attend to first."

The next few days flew by as the much-anticipated wedding drew nearer. Amelia's wedding dress was nearly finished and the food for the celebration had all been planned out, it was just the church that needed to be finished. Like the rest of Monteriggioni, the church had fallen into some disrepair, but since Lorenzo had rewarded us quite handsomely we now had the money to fix it back up. Several men, including Federico, Ezio, and Giovanni, worked day after day to repair both the inside and outside of the building. Once the church was returned to its former glory, the wedding could finally take place. Petruccio, not to be left out of anything, was often running errands and fetching supplies or water for everyone, often taking it upon himself to haul afore-mentioned things up ladders if he had to.

Ezio and Federico threw themselves wholeheartedly into their task, both of them enjoying building something with their hands despite their affluent upbringing. This was fully appreciated by the rest of the men, who were quick to offer advice or instructions if the boys needed it. For us women, we continued to finalize details and always brought lunch for everyone who was working outside.

Finally, the final touches were wrapping up on the church, and the carpenters turned their focus on building tables for the banquet. The wedding celebration was to be held outside of Monteriggioni on a large, open field, and already you could see open-sided canopies going up and a fire pit being dug.

With the church nearly finished, the food preparation was in full swing. Maria took it upon herself to head up this particular endeavor, and she was currently spending all day in the villa's large kitchen cooking and baking alongside everyone else. Five hogs and six steers had been bought for butchering and the meat was currently slow-roasting in three underground coal pits. Barrels of wine, ale, and whatever other alcoholic concoctions people drank were arriving in force and filling up the cellar of the villa. The rest of the building was filled top to bottom with the smells of whatever food was being prepared, and Maria was hard pressed to keep Mario from eating half of it, eventually exiling him from the kitchen until the wedding was over when she caught him trying to swipe a few custard tarts. What she didn't know was that I slipped Mario a few cookies as he made his retreat, earning a spot on his list of favorite people for a while.

The excitement built as time passed until, at last, only two days remained. Federico had suddenly come down with a case of pre-wedding anxiety, of which Ezio offered to 'cure' with a few drinks at the tavern.

"It's your last few days as a free man, fratello -take advantage of it."

Now I could see issues with this particular plan from a mile away, mainly because Ezio had suggested it, but I kept my mouth shut. It was Federico's wedding; he deserved to celebrate a little. So the boys made their visit to the tavern, and I threw myself into whatever chore Maria needed me to do to keep from going and checking up on them. Eventually, there was nothing else for me to do, so I found myself wandering through Monteriggioni as the night fell, slowly drifting closer and closer to the tavern even though I kept telling myself it wasn't on purpose. Finally, I couldn't stand it anymore and was about to go straight to the tavern when a sharp whisper caught my attention.

"Hey, Kiara!"

I paused at the call, and turned to see Federico leaning against a building. His clothes were slightly rumpled, as was his hair, and he looked very inebriated. It was so unlike him that I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing.

"Federico, what are you doing?"

He peered at me blearily, clearly trying to keep his thoughts in order. "I need to get back to the villa, could…could you help me?"

Just to amuse myself, I asked. "And why do you need help getting back? You're still on your feet, aren't you?"

Federico snorted, rubbing at his eyes. "Barely. I just don't want Amelia to see me."

Being the softhearted person I was, I gave in and let Federico lean on me to stay steady and upright as we made our way back. That didn't mean I wasn't going to get a good laugh at his expense later, though. We wove through the buildings on our way to the villa, and even though I could tell Federico was doing his best not to stagger, the line we were walking was far from straight.

"Oof." I grunted as Federico took a particularly misguided step. "How much did you have to drink?"

"Too much," He muttered. "I'm never listening to Ezio again. In fact, remind me to kill him tomorrow."

I laughed under my breath. "Listening to him is your own fault."

It took some doing, but somehow Federico and I managed to get into the villa unnoticed and get him to his room.

"If you remember any of this, you're going to owe me," I said quietly as I let him flop over onto his bed.

"Please don't tell Amelia," He mumbled.

I laughed the whole way back to my room, but Amelia wouldn't know about her fiancé's misadventure until well after the wedding was over.

The next morning came fast, and everyone was up with the sun to finish the final touches for the wedding tomorrow, everyone except Ezio, that is. Federico was doing a good job of not appearing hung over, but I could tell he was rather grouchy under the calm façade, so I took it upon myself to get the younger brother out of bed. Federico probably would have maimed Ezio otherwise.

I found Ezio sprawled out all over his bed, totally passed out and snoring. He was still in his clothes from the night before, and I couldn't help but wonder how he managed to get back to the villa in the first place. I tried calling him, shaking him, even yanking the covers off, but Ezio would just grumble and roll away from me.

I chewed the inside of my cheek for a moment, and then looked around the room to spy a pewter pitcher of water on the dresser that was used for washing. Without further ado, I grabbed the pitcher and threw its cold contents in Ezio's face. He came back to life in a flurry of flailing limbs and a less than becoming shout of surprise.

"Rise and shine, Ezio!" I almost hollered at him.

"Agh! Kiara!" He groaned, clapping his hands over his ears. "Not so loud!"

I dropped the pitcher back in its place with a satisfyingly loud thunk, enjoying every minute of Ezio's painful hangover. I even went so far as to yank the curtains open, allowing the bright sunlight to stream into the room. Ezio grabbed a pillow and stuffed his head under it, but I didn't miss his bemoaned:

"What sadistic pleasure does she get from tormenting me?"

"Get your butt out of bed, we're supposed to be helping set up for the wedding, remember?"

Ezio lifted the edge of the pillow enough to glare daggers at me, and it was a good thing looks couldn't kill.

"Don't you give me that," I said as I crossed my arms.

"You are an evil woman."

"And you are one hung over dude."

That last jab was in English, something I loved to pull every once and a while, which only deepened the scowl I was getting.

"Kiara, if you were a man—"

"I would have hauled you out of bed a long time ago. Up. Now."

Ezio muttered some colorful language into his pillow, but removed it so he could crawl out of bed. I turned to leave, but not without one parting shot.

"Be thankful that it's me and not your older brother. He's not very happy with you right now."

The majority of the day was spent putting up the rest of the canopies and setting out the tables. By late afternoon, the work was done and there was nothing else to do but sit and wait. Amelia was simply glowing, and every time she looked over at Federico, she would quickly glance away and blush. It was so cute to watch.

Both Ezio and Federico had recovered quickly from the previous night, but that still didn't stop Federico from cuffing his younger brother over the head when he thought no one was looking. Ezio walked away rubbing the back of his head, grumbling under his breath.

"Well, I had a good time."

As the sun sank lower in the sky, it showed signs of a beautiful sunset so I climbed one of the tallest buildings in Monteriggioni to watch. The colors were just starting to change when I heard a scrabbling sound down to my right. I peered over the side of the roof to see Ezio's scarred grin as he hung onto the brick.

"Oops, I didn't know you were up here," He said innocently.

I rolled my eyes. "Does solitude mean anything to you?"

He shrugged, or at least as much as he could perched on the side of the building. "You never said you wanted to be alone."

I huffed, but moved so he could finish his climb. Ezio pulled himself up onto the roof easily and plopped down next to me, all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.

"Someone feels better," I commented.

Ezio snorted as he lay back against the roof with his hands folded under his head. "Well anyone would be grumpy waking up like I did this morning."

"And you're very welcome."

He scrunched his nose at me, but didn't say anything else about the subject and we lapsed into silence for a few moments.

"I can't believe that Federico is actually getting married tomorrow," Ezio said finally.

"I know." I replied as the western sky began to turn red and orange. "I'm so happy for them, though."

Ezio chuckled. "I remember, when I was fourteen and he was seventeen, we both swore that we would stay single for as long as we could. He met Amelia two years later."

"A lot happens in two years," I reminded him.

Ezio nodded and silence fell over us again. The sun was about halfway down when Ezio suddenly sat up as if he had some kind of epiphany.

"Kiara."

"Yes?"

"What is the name of the country you come from? I've always meant to ask."

I hesitated for a moment, briefly considering the implications of revealing the name of a country that was still unknown. However, the US was years away from actually being discovered and recognized as a separate country.

"America," I said finally

"Amer…" Ezio struggled a little with the English name he no doubt found foreign.

"A…me…ri…ca," I repeated, stressing the syllables.

"America," Ezio finally managed, the word coming out with a heavy Italian accent.

"What a strange name."

I chuckled, "No stranger than Italia."

He thought about it for a moment, and then nodded his head in agreement, "I suppose.

So, while you were living in this America, was there any 'significant other' in your life?"

Ezio's question caught me off guard and I gave an incredulous, half-laughed, "What?"

He grinned even wider. "Come now, Kiara, surely there was someone who held your favor."

I rolled my eyes and muttered, "Only you would ask that."

"I am simply curious."

"You're teasing me again."

"Am not."

"Are too! Sometimes I swear you live to land me in awkward situations."

"Like this?"

I squealed in protest as Ezio suddenly grabbed me and started to mess up my hair. For the next few minutes we fought and wrestled around on the rooftop until I managed to get turned and start raking my fingers down his sides. It didn't take long for Ezio to be curled up and kicking as he desperately tried to keep from laughing and keep a hold of me at the same time.

"N-not fair!" He cried between bursts of laughter as I tortured his ridiculously ticklish sides. "Kiara! No! Smettila! Smettila!"

"Not until you let me go!" I retorted back, my voice slightly muffled from being nearly crushed against his shoulder.

Finally, Ezio relented and released me from his grip. We were both a bit winded by this point and, to my aggravation, my hair was a complete mess. We resumed our former positions on the roof, now with an extra foot or two of space in between, and I pulled the tie out of my hair so I could tame it back down.

"You fight dirty," Ezio grumbled as he lightly scratched at his sides.

"You deserve it," I responded smugly in English.

Ezio shot me an annoyed look. "One of these days, you're going to tell me what you are saying."

More English just to aggravate him, "Ha, I think not."

Silence fell between us as I finished smoothing my hair down again and pulling back into its former ponytail. I thought for sure that the subject on my non-existent love life had been dropped, but I underestimated how persistent Ezio could be.

"So, about my earlier question…"

"Again with this?" I moaned. "Why do you want to know so badly?"

Ezio shrugged. "I just do."

Realizing that he wouldn't stop pestering me until he got an answer, I sighed and gave in.

"Oh fine. No, there wasn't anybody, and I preferred it that way."

"Why?"

Oy vey…

"I don't have anything against men, but I just wasn't interested in a relationship. Besides, some of the guys I was around could be kind of mean."

I saw Ezio's brow furrow. "To you?"

"Sometimes."

"What did they do?"

"They liked to tease me because I had a strange name and my mother disappeared when I was little. There was one guy, though, that really liked to pick on me. If people weren't looking, he would block my way and eventually back me up into a corner, just to intimidate me."

"And you just let him do that?" Ezio asked heatedly, even though his anger wasn't directed at me.

"I was new to the area; I had just lost my father. I really wasn't in any condition to stand up for myself."

"He didn't hurt you, did he?"

"No, he just wanted to get a laugh at my expense."

"Unbelievable," Ezio muttered with a shake of his head. "If I had been there…"

"Hey, don't worry about it," I said. "They can't bother me anymore. Even if they could, I'd just punch them in the nose and be done with it."

Instead of laughing at my attempt at humor like I had hoped, Ezio continued to brood and I sighed, letting the subject drop.

"You know," Ezio said after a minute, "that's the first time I've heard you speak of your father in a long time. Why don't you talk about him?"

I looked back to the setting sun. "It's hard for me, even after over three years," I said softly. I reached up and fingered the beaded necklace I always wore. "I still miss him, Ezio. I loved him so much."

I felt a lump start to form in my throat, and tried to swallow it away. Three years…and losing dad still hurt terribly. He wouldn't have wanted me to still be grieving in this way, but I couldn't help it sometimes, his death had left such a huge hole in my life, and I was still on the mend. I felt a hand on my shoulder, and looked back to see that Ezio was staring at me with all the sympathy in the world.

"He was everything to you, wasn't he?"

I nodded. "He was supposed to be there, he was always supposed to be there. When he died…I felt like the world had ended, like I had no one left."

"Ezio! Kiara!"

We both turned at the distant sound of Maria's voice calling us back to the villa. I quickly swung off of the roof, ready to put the subject of Dad's death behind me. I landed on my feet easily and heard the thump of Ezio's boots hitting the ground behind me. I started forward, but long fingers curled around my arm and brought me to a halt. Ezio stepped forward and pulled me into a warm, comforting hug, neatly tucking my head under his chin.

"You know we're there for you, right?" He asked quietly.

I nodded against his shoulder, doing my best not to sniff. "Yeah."

"Padre tries very hard to be a father to you."

"I know he does, Ezio, I know. It's not that I don't love him for it, it's just…so hard for me to let go."

"You have that right, I suppose." Ezio said as we retreated back to arms-length. "Not every wound heals completely."

There was a knowing tone in his voice and I nodded. Ezio smiled then, breaking up the gloomy mood. "Come on, we best get back before mother comes looking for us. Ten florins says Federico doesn't sleep tonight."

The truth of it was, I didn't much sleep myself; I was just too excited. As soon as the sun peeked over the eastern horizon, I was out of bed and getting dressed. My dress for the day was rather plain for the occasion, but by the time I had realized that, it was too late for me to have another one made. It was still a very pretty blue dress, so it wasn't a total loss.

I fussed with my hair for thirty minutes before giving up and deciding to go to Maria or Claudia for help. I hurried down the hallway, shoes in hand, to Amelia's room. The woman in question was already dressed and looking as beautiful as ever. In this time period, a bride wore her finest dress, regardless of the color, and Amelia's was a deep red trimmed with lace. She was wearing the intricate bridal belt that Federico had given to her last night and her dark hair was down and wavy from being in braids. Claudia and Maria had painstakingly made a small wreath of white flowers and rosemary that Amelia would wear on her head later.

Thankfully Claudia was free at the moment so she could help me with my hair.

"I do wish you had said something about your dress earlier, Kiara," The younger woman said as she pulled my hair back. "It would do you well to have a nicer dress to wear for formal events."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Sure, Claudia, as if I don't know that already. As soon as my hair was up and back in a rather pretty style, I turned to see Amelia wringing her hands in her lap as she sat in front of a mirror. I smiled and walked over to her.

"Nervous?"

She nodded, looking just a tad pale. I knelt down, as best I could with a dress on, and put my hand on her knee. "Why?"

"What if I am unable to be a good wife to Federico?" She blurted out suddenly. "I was raised as a noblewoman, and I am still unfamiliar with the kind of life he leads now."

Maria spoke up as she put a kind hand on Amelia's shoulder. "I felt the same way when I married Giovanni. I knew he was an Assassin when he proposed, but I still loved him very much. Yes there is always the burden of fearing your husband may never come home, but you'll find that the times you spend together are so much sweeter because of it. You are not alone as I was, Amelia, we are all here to help you. Federico loves you, and he will not demand perfection."

The young bride looked immensely relived and the sparkle returned to her dark eyes as she looked up at Maria.

"Thank you."

"You are most welcome, cara," Maria replied with a warm smile.

I left soon after that, so filled with energy that I needed to do something to kill time. I wandered around the villa for a while, and eventually ran into our male counterparts. Ezio, Giovanni, Mario, and Federico were all dressed in their finest clothing as they waited around. Federico looked especially handsome in his deep red overcoat.

"Kiara, dear girl, I almost didn't recognize you in a dress," Mario teased, but I didn't miss him pulling at the collar of his shirt.

"You look about as comfortable as I feel," I retorted, to which Mario gave a long-suffering sigh.

"Damn coats," He muttered. "I don't know how you managed as a banker, Giovanni."

The younger brother chuckled. "You get used to them after a while."

As Giovanni and Mario went back to talking, I looked over to Federico, who gave me a shaky, but happy smile. I smiled back and stepped over to hug him.

"You alright?" I asked.

Federico reached up to run his fingers through his hair, a nervous habit, but caught himself just in time. "So far."

I patted his arm. "Oh come on, it's not like you're going to trip and fall at the altar."

This time his fingers did make it to his hair, and I regretted saying anything. "I was teasing, Federico. Sheesh."

Claudia had once explained to me how Italian weddings in this time period worked and it left with my head spinning. I thought American weddings were complex, but these Renaissance weddings took the cake, no pun intended. However, Federico and Amelia's wedding was much simpler than the normal noble wedding, and we all preferred it that way. There was no dowry, no contract, and no notary to conduct the ceremony, just family, friends, and one huge celebration afterwards.

The church was filling up quickly when I made it down there. Mario was a highly respected figure in Monteriggioni, and since it was his oldest nephew that was getting married, who was also well thought of, people wanted to be present for the wedding ceremony. Thankfully, the front pew was reserved for family and I took my seat next to the rest of the Auditore crew. Ezio was Federico's groomsman, both of which were yet to be seen. The pastor of the church stood in front of the altar, a beaming smile on the aging, yet kind features. According to him, weddings were his favorite ceremony to perform.

It was clear that the church wouldn't fit all of the people who wanted to attend, and seating was first come first serve. Those who were adamant about staying stood in the back in a large group. Maria was already wiping at her eyes and I found myself biting my lip to keep from grinning constantly.

All of a sudden, a hush fell over the whole church as if on cue and I held my breath. Federico appeared with Amelia on his arm from a back room and they walked up to the altar, both just glowing. Ezio took his place behind Federico, looking very proud of his older brother. The pastor motioned for Amelia to stand to one side of him and Federico on the other. Maria had pulled out her kerchief by this point and I had butterflies in my stomach as the pastor spoke up.

"Federico Auditore and Amelia Mancini, you stand here before God and this congregation with the intent to join together in holy matrimony. Federico as you take this woman as your wedded wife, do you promise to love and care for her, in sickness and in health, and to remain faithful for as long as you both live?"

"I do."

"Amelia, as you take this man to be your wedded husband, do you promise to love and care for him, in sickness and in health, to obey his leadership and remain faithful for as long as you both live?"

Amelia smiled beautifully. "I do."

The pastor smiled. "Federico, the ring please."

Federico took one of Amelia's hands and slipped a simple gold band onto her ring finger. In this day and age, men didn't normally wear any kind of wedding ring, but Giovanni did and Federico wanted to do the same. So, as soon as the ring was on Amelia's hand, she put an identical band onto Federico's finger. The pastor took Federico's hand and Amelia's hand and put them together, clasping them with both of his.

"Federico and Amelia, because of the vows you both have spoken, and by the authority God has given to me, I now declare you lawfully wedded as man and wife."

This statement was quickly followed by a firm smack on Federico's back by a grinning Ezio, a traditional gesture that meant that the wedding was complete. Applause broke out from the entire congregation and the pastor laughed.

"Well, go on boy, kiss her!"

But before Federico could even move, Amelia threw her arms around his neck and pulled him down for the kiss. Everyone laughed and then cheered as Federico wrapped his arms around her and kissed her back properly. I nearly shed a tear or two myself, I was so happy for them.

With the ceremony over, people began filtering out of the church to make their way to the meadow where the celebration was to be held. I got up to follow everyone out, and looked back over my shoulder to see if Federico and Amelia were coming. I blushed a little when I saw that they were still holding each other, their foreheads touching, and I turned away so they could have the moment to themselves.

The rest of the family waited outside the church as Ezio ran to get the horse that Amelia would ride on when we joined the rest of Monteriggioni out in the meadow. It was yet another tradition for a bride, especially if she was a noble, to ride on a white horse in public after the wedding ceremony. We didn't have a white horse, so we had to make do with a beautiful dappled grey mare.

Ezio led the placid horse up, and I petted her velvety nose as we waited for Federico and Amelia. The two were not long in coming and it didn't take Federico long to help Amelia up into the saddle and be leading the horse, and our small procession, out the gates and up to the meadow.

The next several hours were filled with eating, drinking, and lots of dancing. Now I was by no means a dance expert, so Giovanni took it upon himself to teach me a few basic dances when he wasn't partnered up with Maria. Mario was having a good time, as usual, and he was lighter on his feet than I had expected. I had to laugh, though, because apparently the Auditore charm was a genetic thing. Several older women found themselves playfully wooed by the roughish Assassin and giggled like young girls as they danced the night away. Ezio, being the one of the last of the Auditore bachelors, was never short a dance partner and Petruccio was simply too cute to not have a few dances of his own. Claudia herself was quite sought after by young men, something that did not go unnoticed by Giovanni. Federico and Amelia were nearly inseparable, but they swapped out dance partners occasionally with the rest of the family. Our party continued well into the night, filling it with music, laughter, color, and more food.

I plopped down onto a nearby bench, having just finished a dance with Federico. It was so warm that I was sweating a bit, but I think everyone else was too. I looked up and saw the stars glimmering out of the clear, black sky and I found myself wishing that this celebration would never end. Tomorrow we would begin our pursuit of Jacopo de Pazzi and his men, and the cold reality of our occupation would come crashing back down on us. I looked back down at our party, and saw Federico dancing with Amelia yet again, and they both looked so happy.

I smiled and settled back against a table still full of mouthwatering food. Maybe reality could wait a little longer.

Grazie mille – Thank you very much

Non lo so – I don't know

Smettila! – Stop it!

A/N – Hey guys, I know it's been a while, again, since I updated, and I really do not intend for you readers to wait that long. The second half of this chapter was difficult to write because of research and attempting to keep it realistic instead of cheesy. I'm also really busy right now with school and officer duties for the business club I am a part of. We lost one of our members in an accident on the 18th, which was also my birthday, so it's been kind of rough around here.

Again, I apologize for the wait, and I'll try to do better in the future. To those who reviewed, I thank you from the bottom of my heart, it always makes my day when someone takes the time to give me some feedback.

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Until next time,

~TKD Dragon