"Alright, there it is,"

Eugene led Altair down the path towards a large, square, brick building with two floors above the ground. A small kind of dome was visible on the roof of the building, hidden by a large kind of acroterion of a sun like that of the engraving in the courtyard with the pictures of Rapunzel and her family and Rapunzel and Eugene on the two stone walls. Windows lined the front of all three floors of the building with a small garden-like part next to it with a few benches and a small patch of grass and a few flowers and such. A few vines had grown up the side of the building from the garden side of the building but by the looks of it they had been cut recently to stop them from going up the side of a window. A smaller square, brick building was just visible behind the library with several small holes on the roof and a single open doorway on the front of it. There were no windows on this building.

The two pushed open the wooden doors that were the main entrance to the library and walked inside. The interior of the ground floor was a large square shape with several rows of bookcases lined up along the walls. One was placed against the side of a flight of stairs that led up to the next floor. A few tables were in the middle of the room where a few people were at work. Among the people in front of them were several Islamic and Christian scholars, one or two working at the same table! It was a surprise to anyone new in Corona for the present war going on at the time but not for Eugene or Altair. After all, they were from multi-cultural communities where two, sometimes three religions lived, worked and talked together.

"What exactly is it you're looking for?" Eugene asked him.

"A spare piece of paper for me to write a reply to Al Mualim on," he replied. "Where would they keep it?"

"How should I know?" Eugene shrugged his shoulders, looking away, obviously not wanting to be here. Altair just shook his head, feeling the same way about him. He was going to have to ask.

"Um, excuse me, miss," he stopped a woman who was reading a book titled: Caesar. "Um, do you know where this place keeps spare pieces of paper? For writing letters or messages?"

She nodded. "Yes, just up the stairs," she answered, pointing over to them.

"Thank you," Altair said and went to tell Eugene, but she stopped him.

"Wait…" she said, holding up a finger towards him. He looked back at her, meeting her curious gaze. "You look really familiar," she told him.

It was then a hint of panic began to grip Altair. Oh no! Did she…did she knew who he was from what happened yesterday? Hopefully not, but if she did then he and Eugene were going to have to flee, very quickly.

"Have you been here before?" she asked him.

"No, he hasn't," another voice intervened and Eugene walked over. "He's a friend," he told the woman.

"Oh," she raised her head slightly in understanding. "Sorry, he just looks really familiar with what happened yesterday," she admitted.

"Yes…, It's just the way he dresses where he comes from, isn't it Altair," Eugene said.

Quickly taking part in the conversation, Altair nodded. "Yes," he said. "Thank you for your help," he said to the woman.

"Oh, my pleasure," she replied and she walked off towards one of the free tables to sit down and read her book.

Altair looked at Eugene. "Thank you," he said.

Eugene just shrugged. "Let's just go," he replied.

Altair nodded and the two walked over towards the stairs and up them to the next floor, the sounds of the pounding echoing loudly as their feet hit the wood. When they reached the top, they found themselves in a long corridor with several rooms on either side. At the end of the corridor was another flight of stairs that led up to the next floor. Talking echoed from several of the rooms. A few sermons and debates were going on in some of them so the two were going to have to be careful they did not disturb anyone.

"Did she say which room it was in?" Eugene asked Altair, who shook his head.

"No, but it could be in any one of them," he replied, walking down the corridor. "We'll just have to look,"

"And hope we don't interrupt anything," Eugene muttered, though it was loud enough for Altair to hear him. "I heard if they interrupt sermons they try and curse you or something crazy stuff like that,"

Altair stifled a laugh. "I take it you believe in God," he said.

"No, not really a believer," Eugene replied.

As the two passed each room, they looked inside to see if there was anything that looked like it kept spare pieces of parchment or paper or anything to write on. They were correct about the sermons and debates though. They passed one room on the left side of the corridor where a few Muslim and Christian scholars were debating over religious texts. As they passed, they heard something about predestination or…something similar to that but it was said in Arabic.

Eventually, they found a free room on the right where a short, fat man dressed in a top and a pair of grey trousers with a small flat capped hat on his head was sitting behind a desk, writing down the messages that had come from wherever to Corona and left Corona to wherever they were going. A few pieces of paper were stacked on the end of his desk and another smaller wooden one was placed on the other side of the room just under the closed window that overlooked the houses and buildings behind the library.

"Found it," Altair muttered as he and Eugene stepped into the room. The man looked up at them as he finished writing down another message that had arrived from Venice. He greeted Eugene with a smile.

"Hello, Eugene," he said.

"Hey, Joseph," he replied. "This is my friend, Altair," he greeted him.

"How do you do," Joseph greeted him and Altair nodded in reply. "Can I help you?" he asked friendly.

"Yes, I need a bit of paper to write a message," Altair explained. "Can I borrow a piece?"

"Of course," Joseph handed him a piece. "Hang on, let me get you a quill and an inkpot," he added.

"No need," Altair stopped him and he quickly took Joseph's from his hand and walked over to the desk next to the window.

"Um…okay," Joseph replied, looking up at Eugene. "So how are you, Eugene?" he asked him.

"Fine," he replied. "It been busy?"

"Joseph shrugged. "Same as usual. Oh, that reminds me, how's the princess? I heard what happened yesterday and I was worried,"

"Oh yeah, she's fine," Eugene reassured him, glancing over towards Altair, who half turned his head to look at him. Their eyes met and his told Eugene's that they were going to have to play by what they had talked about. "We uh…got him last night when we went to search for him and freed her," he told Joseph as he looked back at him.

"Oh, that's good," he replied. He leaned in a little towards Eugene, though his large stomach almost ended up pushing the desk he was sitting behind forward and the chair squeaked a little as if it were relieved he was taking off some of the weight. "Um, Eugene, between you and me, is it true that a Crusader was responsible for what happened to the princess?" he asked, lowering his voice to a whisper.

Eugene shook his head quickly. "Oh, no, no! That's just a rumour," He went to speak more but a sudden chill made the hairs on his arms stand up and he shivered slightly. "Whoa, where did that come from?" he muttered, looking through the doorway at the opposite room to see the window overlooking the street open slightly. Oh, that explained it. "Excuse me, Joseph," he said to him as he walked out of the room and across the corridor into the next room.

This room was a little smaller than the one where Altair and Joseph were. It had only a bare desk against the left wall with an inkpot with a quill on it. The window was slightly open and, apart from the light breeze, the talking and clattering and such of the outside street was filtering into the building. Eugene walked over to the window and grabbed hold of the handle.

"Damn cold!" he muttered under his breath.

Then, just as he went to close it, he saw two people walking up the path towards the library. Stopping where he was, he studied them with his eyes and saw they were Crusaders.

"What are they doing here?" he muttered to himself.

As they approached, he could see they were in deep conversation with one another, ignoring the people who viewed them with glares and suspicion as they passed them. By the looks of the reactions from the people around them, there was obviously a rumour going around that the Crusaders may be responsible for the fiasco that happened yesterday.

Quickly, Eugene rushed from the window and back into the room across the corridor where Joseph was standing next to the window, revealing his over-extended stomach under his top, which looked like it was full to bursting, with an eagle standing on the windowsill. Altair was standing next to him.

"Are you sure he will be able to find Masyaf?" Altair asked Joseph.

"Like finding water along a coastal area," he replied as he put the piece of paper, which had been rolled up, in some kind of cylinder object attached to the legs of the eagle. The creature jumped back from the window and spread It's wings and flew off into the air and away over the town towards the sea. Watching it go was an amazing thing to see despite this creature being a predator.

"Altair!" Eugene exclaimed as he ran into the room, skidding to a halt in the doorway.

"What is it, Eugene?" Altair asked him.

"Two Crusaders coming up the path," Eugene told him.

Upon hearing these words, Altair ran out of the room, past Eugene into the next room and over to the window.

"Is everything alright, Eugene?" Joseph asked.

"Y-yeah, everything's fine," Eugene reassured him. "Thanks anyway, Joseph," he added and he rushed over to the window. Joseph just shrugged and walked back over to the desk to continue with his work.

As Eugene reached the window, Altair pulled him back a little from it so as not to be seen by the Crusaders as they walked underneath them. He had seen one of them and recognized him instantly. The man on the right was blonde haired and he had seen his face just as they walked under the window of the building. He was the soldier who had been talking to the Crusader, who he had killed yesterday, in the shop. The other man though was a new face to him. He was about the same height as the blonde haired man but with black hair, blue eyes and had a small scar down his chin that went up the side of his face from where the edge of a sword in the Holy Lands had struck him, only just narrowly avoiding killing him. Both of them had their hands on their swords, probably expecting a sudden attack like what had happened to their comrade yesterday so they wanted to be ready for this person, or persons, if they tried to fight them.

Altair withdrew when they came near the window so they did not look up and see him and end up causing another fiasco. The two waited for a few moments until Altair stepped forward back over to the window and looked out to see the two Crusaders walking up the path towards the castle. He breathed a quiet sigh of relief. They were not coming in here so they were safe for now.

"D'you think they are important?" Eugene asked.

"Must be if they are heading to the castle," Altair replied curiously. "Come, let's follow them,"

"Best get back downstairs quick then if we're gonna do that," Eugene pointed out lowly, thinking that by the time they got downstairs and outside, the Crusaders would be gone.

"No need," Altair corrected him matter-of-factly and before Eugene could ask why there was to be no need, Altair opened the window and climbed out of it, grabbing the windowsill and lowering himself down with ease. Eugene watched him do this with amazement.

"Aren't you scared?" he asked him.

"No, I've done this hundreds of times before," Altair replied. "Come if we want to catch up to them,"

He released his grip on the windowsill and fell to the ground about ten feet below him, his feet hitting the paving stones hard but he suffered no injury. Eugene hesitated for a moment, debating whether this was such a good idea, but he decided it was best to do it and he pulled himself out of the window, turning himself over as he did, and dangled in mid-air for a moment before releasing his grip. For a moment, he was falling through the air until his feet impacted on the stone ground. The feeling of the impact flared up his feet and ankles and he winced, gritting his teeth. A few people walking by gave them looks as if to say: "Are they mad?"

"Ow!" he hissed. "That hurt!" he looked at Altair, who just looked at him as if he had been expecting this. "I'm surprised that didn't hurt you," he commented appreciatively.

"You get used to it after so many times," he replied. He looked back up the path and saw that the Crusaders were moving on quickly. They were at least lucky they were wearing white clothing and had swords or they would be almost impossible to find. "C'mon, we have to follow them," he urged Eugene and moved on after them.

"Right behind ya!" Eugene whispered as he struggled to move for a moment before his feet regained feeling and he ran off after Altair.

Meanwhile, outside the castle

Rapunzel approached the enormous castle entrance. It was a huge archway with a large wooden door that had been split in two and could open both outwards and inwards. A few guards were standing nearby, talking to one another and two more were overlooking the city from where they were standing on the top of the gateway. Following the fiasco yesterday, the guards had been told to be on alert in case anything happened again. Though they had been reassured that the man who had kidnapped Rapunzel was dead, they were still cautious, especially as they too had been affected by the rumours that the Crusaders were possibly responsible for what had happened yesterday.

Next to the entrance to the castle was a small orchard in a garden and a squeak from one of the nearby trees stopped her. She looked over and saw a creature form on the bark of one of the trees. It was Pascal. He jumped down from the tree onto the ground and ran across to her. She chuckled and knelt down, holding out her hand for him.

"Hey Pascal!" she greeted happily as he jumped on her arm and climbed up it to her shoulder. "You miss me?"

He nodded with a squeak. Ever since the drama in the stable, he had wanted to be with her more. He was always very protective of her. He had been long before she had returned here. Now he wanted to be with her again to make sure she was safe.

"Stay on alert, soldier," a voice from behind said. Rapunzel and Pascal looked behind them to see the captain emerge from a small gap between the gates and stop to talk to the soldiers. Quickly, so as not to draw attention, Rapunzel walked off to the orchard and stopped and knelt down there to look as if she was doing something, waiting for the captain to walk on. She heard him say something else to the soldiers outside the gate before he walked on down the path into the city. After a second, she slowly turned her head just in time to see him disappear into the streets.

"Wonder where he's off to?" she muttered to herself as she stood up. She looked at Pascal, who just shrugged his shoulders, also having no idea of where the captain could be going to. "Let's follow him," Rapunzel said and she walked out of the orchard and down the street.

She had only walked about twenty feet when she suddenly stopped and hid behind the corner of a brick wall that stuck out from a building, poking her head out from behind it to see the captain stop next to a building that was next to a large kind of courtyard, separating it from the rest of the row of buildings. Two men in white uniforms approached him. Crusaders.

What is he doing with them? Rapunzel thought curiously.

She and Pascal watched as they talked for a moment before the captain led them into a courtyard, disappearing behind the brick wall next to the entrance to it. Her curiousness overtook her, determined to hear what they were talking about but as she began to move back over to the courtyard entrance…

"Rapunzel!"

The voice stopped her in the middle of the street and she looked to where it was coming from to see Altair and Eugene running up to her.

"Guys!" she exclaimed, running up to them.

"Are you alright, what are you doing here?" Eugene asked her.

"I just saw the captain go into that courtyard with two Crusaders," she told them, nodding towards the courtyard.

"Was one of them blonde haired and the other black haired?" Altair asked her and she nodded. He looked at Eugene. "Those are the ones we've just seen," he said to Eugene, who nodded in agreement.

"What you've just seen them?" Rapunzel asked, a little aghast.

Altair nodded. "Just as we were about to leave the library, Eugene called me over to a window on the second floor and we saw them pass," he looked at the courtyard as if he could see through the brick wall to where three were. "I recognize one of them," he muttered. A pause hung in the air for a moment as the three debated how they were going to find out what was going on with the captain and the Crusaders. Finally, Altair broke the silence. "Come," he said and ran over to the courtyard, pressing himself against the brick wall just next to the entrance. Eugene and Rapunzel followed.

When Altair reached the entrance, he poked his head around to look into the courtyard. It was small and square and was between two brick buildings and a wooden rectangular building at the end opposite the entrance. A large open door was on the front of the building facing the entrance with a few windows to the right of it on the wall. Renovation work must have been going on here because a ladder was placed against the side of the rectangular building to the left building entrance and there were several crates scattered about, some on a cart parked in the bottom right corner of the courtyard, others placed in piles. At the moment, it was empty so the only place for them to go was inside the rectangular building.

Cautiously, Altair, Eugene and Rapunzel crept into the courtyard, moving over towards the rectangular building, keeping low and moving quietly in case those inside the building looked out into the courtyard and saw them or heard them. As they neared the building, they heard talking coming from inside it. Three different voices, among them captain's which they recognized. Altair also recognized the voice of the blonde haired man, having heard him the day before.

"How do we hear them?" Eugene whispered to him.

Altair looked around the courtyard for a moment, trying to answer his question. Could they hide in the building? Wait, no! If they tried to do that they might be seen as they did not know where abouts in the building the three were talking. What about under the windows? Oh wait, no, not there either! They'll be seen as soon as they leave the building? What about…his eyes moved towards the ladder placed against the building.

"Up there," Altair replied, pointing to the ladder. He, keeping low, sprinted over to it, Eugene and Rapunzel, who placed a hand on Pascal to stop him from falling off her shoulder as she moved, close behind him. When they reached the ladder, the crept up it as quietly as possible, desperately trying not to shake it or cause it to snap or even make any noise at all as they reached the roof. When they were all on the roof, they all laid down and moved across it towards a small hole in the roof about ten feet down from the entrance to the building, stopping just inches from it.

"Look, I've told you two already, the man who did the killing and the kidnapping is dead!" they heard the captain. "Your perfectly safe here!"

"Is that so?" another voice asked sarcastically. "Then you be'er explain why we were glared at and everyone thought we were some kind of killers,"

"Wait here," he said to Eugene and Rapunzel, but he quickly stopped when he noticed Pascal on her shoulder. "Um…Rapunzel, why do have a chameleon on your shoulder?"

"His name's Pascal," she whispered back.

Pascal crawled up onto her head and gave a slight glare to Altair, eyeing him dangerously. Altair just looked at him dumbfounded, wondering why he was looking at him like this.

"Why is he looking at me like that?" he asked.

"Probably because of when you knocked out Rapunzel yesterday," Eugene answered.

"Oh, well…he doesn't have anything to fear from me now," Altair said to him.

"Pascal," Rapunzel said, and he looked back at her. "C'mon, he's a friend now," she told him.

Pascal looked back at Altair and pointed two fingers up at his eyes and then at Altair, meaning: I'll be watching you and crawled back over Rapunzel's head to her shoulder and sat there.

"Don't worry," she reassured Altair as he moved forward a little more to the edge of the hole. "He'll get used to you eventually,"

"I'm sure I'll be okay if he doesn't, Rapunzel," he muttered back and stopped almost right at the very edge of the hole and looked down into the building. Eugene and Rapunzel pulled themselves up either side of him and also looked in.

From where they were they could see the captain leaning against a wooden panel that came down from the ceiling to the ground. In front of him, with their backs to the door, were the two Crusaders. A look of annoyance was on the captain's face, meaning that he was not happy with the way this conversation with the Crusaders was going. It was possible they felt exactly the same way.

"Look, I've told you many times now, I can't explain for the rumours going around the city," the captain said to the Crusaders.

The black haired man stifled a laugh, folding his arms. "Well you're the captain, ya should be," he replied.

"Who's to say we won't get attacked in this city by the people because they think we're the ones who tried to kidnap the princess?" the blonde haired man added.

The captain heaved a heavy sigh. "Look, don't worry," he told them, trying to sound reassuring but his voice was dripping with frustration. "Like I've told you, I can't stop the rumours, but the people won't attack you. Plus, as you've no doubt heard, the man who did the kidnapping is dead,"

"What if 'e's got any associates?" the black haired man pointed out.

"Then I'm sure they would have left by now," the captain told him, though his voice was actually having to lie for there was an associate of Altair here. Possibly even more, and maybe he could even be counted as one of them. "Besides, he shouldn't have. There was only one of him here and taking part in the kidnapping," he lied.

The black haired man huffed, not sounding convinced but he took his word. "Alright," he said after a few moments pause. "I'll take ya word for it. But I'll warn ya, if we get attacked, we won't 'esitate to hold ya responsible!" he warned the captain. "C'mon, Harry, let's go,"

"Where are you two going?" the captain asked.

"Oh we have to meet…um, an important friend of ours here in the city," the blonde haired man replied. "Just some business,"

"Yeah, and one you don't need to know of," the black haired man butted in, adding a low and dangerous sounding tone on his voice to the captain.

The two left, walking out across the courtyard and back out into the streets, turning left and disappearing from sight behind the brick wall and the buildings. A second later, the captain emerged from the building, heaving another heavy sigh in frustration as he shut the door to the building. Oh, this was getting very tiring! He was fed up with these bastard Crusaders harassing him and viewing the entire city with suspicion as if it was going to suddenly turn on them. It would not of course but trying to tell that to them was going to be a momentous task, one that he [the captain] doubted very much would work.

As he went to walk off, he was stopped by the sound of movement on the top of the building. He rolled his eyes.

"Alright, you three can come out now," he said, turning to face them.

They crawled over to the edge of the building. Rapunzel and Eugene climbed down the ladder whilst Altair jumped down from the building, landing in front of the captain.

"You heard us?" Altair asked.

The captain nodded. "When I was talking to them, I thought I heard some footsteps on the roof and I saw the shadow of one of you pass by the door," he told him. "Had a feeling it would be you three. The only ones who really are watching the Crusaders more than the guards or the people are,"

"What was that all about anyway?" Rapunzel asked as she and Eugene walked over.

"Oh, they were getting ratty about them being glared at or everyone viewing them with suspicion wherever they went," he explained. He sighed again and looked over at the courtyard entrance as if he was watching them go again. "I hate those Crusaders so much!" he growled, clenching one of his fists. "I'll be so glad when they go,"

I think everyone would Altair agreed. "Did they say or give a hint of who this…um, 'important friend' of theirs was?" he asked the captain, who shook his head.

"Nah, they won't tell anyone," he replied. "Geoffrey likes to keep this between him and Harry,"

"Which one is which?" Eugene asked.

"The black haired one is Geoffrey and the blonde haired one is Harry, Rider," the captain answered. He looked back at Altair. "So what are you going to do?" he asked him.

"We'll have to try and capture him and see what he knows," he replied. "Do you know his routine in the city or anything?"

The captain shook his head. "No. I do know that he spends most of his time in the Crusader camp and that he comes into the city every so often, but what he does…" he shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know,"

"Then we'll have to find that out ourselves," Altair turned to Eugene. "Eugene, we'll have to scour the city. Try and find out anything from anybody on what he does and where he goes in the city,"

Eugene nodded. "Right, we best get started then,"

"Hey wait, what about me?" Rapunzel piped up. "I can help you guys,"

"Rapunzel, are you sure that's a good idea?" Eugene asked her, a little concerned. "I mean, what if this time, the Crusaders do try and kidnap you or you get yourself into danger?"

She rolled her eyes. "Eugene, I can look after myself," she reassured him. "Besides, I doubt the Crusaders will make off with me. Virtually the whole city and all the guards hate them. Plus, there's more guards on the bridge so they'll have to get through them if they want to get out of here,"

"She's right, Eugene," Altair added. "Don't worry, they won't make with her anyway after what happened yesterday. They'll be too busy trying to watch themselves,"

Eugene sighed. "Alright," he replied. "Before we go, where will we meet up and when?" he asked.

"Salad's in a few hours," Altair answered. "Best get started," and they left the courtyard. The captain walked out after them.

"Good luck you three," he said to them. They raised their hands to say thanks in reply as they went off and the captain turned and walked back up towards the castle.