Disclaimer:I do not own Ezio or any other mentioned Assassin's Creed characters, they are the property of Ubisoft. As for the historical characters mentioned… well.. I guess they belong to history… or themselves…

Author Notes:
While doing some reading up about the various historical characters in the Assassin's Creed story, I noticed that 1476 was a pretty significant year for Leonardo. Funny no one in the game mentions it since "the incident" would have been a talking point in Florence that year.

Also, I decided to give Vieri slightly better fighting skills. I mean, for a young man who has allegedly been trained to kill from a young age, he sure seems incompetent in the game.

Glossary:
Il Buco - translated directly, it means "the hole". Apparently an actual tavern in 15th century Florence.

There are also a bunch of Italian swear words, but I think you can google them for the meaning.

Neither Ezio nor Leonardo had any recollection how it happened. After leaving the crazed gypsy woman, they decided to head over to Il Buco, a tavern that a number of Leonardo's acquaintances liked to frequent. They had a bit of dinner and then started drinking again over a game of cards (despite Leonardo's protests that Ezio had way too much already). After losing and then winning a few hands, the card players decided to move their party over to the a nearby house that was owned by one of the men. Along the way they picked up one or two more "acquaintances", including a particularly good looking fellow which Ezio vaguely remembered was either called "Giulio" or "Jacopo".

What happened after they stepped through the door and made their way up to a comfortable second floor lounging area was almost a blur. Ezio was sure that they had quite a few more drinks before he started singing loudly and Leonardo cracked a joke which made them all fall down laughing. After that, the warm feeling created by the liquor and music brought out some deeply repressed emotions and he started crying and hugging everyone. The last thing he remembered was his friend's arm around his shoulders and then after that he drifted off into a warm, comforting slumber.

The Office of the Night said that when they raided "that den of sin", they found him in the arms of his lover, one Leonardo da Vinci, a Florentine artist with a spotty record.

After he sobered up enough for the officials at the Office to read to him "the charges", Ezio found out that he had somehow been participant in "a decadent orgy of the flesh the likes of which would have done Sodom proud". In fact, when the house was raided in the middle of the night, the owner was caught "without his pants… in the embrace of a notorious harlot", a rather dashing young fellow by the name of Jacopo Saltarelli, whom they "picked up" en route to the house.

Ezio highly doubted that he had actually "participated" in anything that evening because he woke up in jail fully dressed with the fastenings of his shirt tied in the exact same manner as he would have done himself. And as he later said to his own doubting father in a nasty argument, "…the only part of me that is actually hurting is my head… and no it's not the OTHER HEAD!"

Although Ezio spent only 1 day in the jail cells of the Office of the Night, "the case" dragged on for months, right through into the New Year. The date of his trial was set for sometime in the beginning of 1476. The reason for the prolonged "investigations" was because there were so many defendants, who demanded to be given time to find legal representation that was "befitting their stature".

The young man had no idea who the other defendants were, except for Leonardo, whom he did not see again until the trial.

Naturally Giovanni was furious when he arrived at the Office to get his son out of jail. He practically dragged the young man home after sitting for 3 hours with the officials as they laid out the details of the case for him. Once they were home, Ezio had to endure another hour or so of his father's tirade in front of his entire family. No one, not even Maria, had ever seen Giovanni Auditore so infuriated. His face was contorted to the point where Ezio could almost believe the old gypsy's words, that his father could kill a man.

Life became nothing short of unbearable for the young man, he felt people whispering, staring and pointing at him wherever he went. Even the eyes of the family servants seemed to reflect their judgment of him. He began to find solace in his work, especially when he had to stay up for long hours in the night pouring over accounting ledgers. It was the one time where he didn't have to speak to anyone at all.

Amazingly, his first "supporter" was also the banker he had been apprenticed to since he was 14. Giovanni Tornabouni, one of Florence's most powerful merchants was once asked if he might "send away the young Auditore". The great man replied, "He is honest, intelligent and diligent… all that we expect from a banker. I see no reason to 'send away' my apprentice just because some people say that he is a degenerate in his free time."

Although Ezio started staying late at the offices of the Tornabouni family to avoid his family, his elder brother was always there to walk him home. He also accompanied him on the way to work early in the morning.

"You don't have to do this, you know," Ezio remarked rather irritably to his brother one morning as they walked to his workplace.

"But I WANT to."

"You can tell father that I'll be the model of … chastity… from now on…. Not that I haven't been the model of chastity for the last 17 years…" he sniped back bitterly.

"You mean you haven't... not at all?" there was an incredulous look on Federico's face. "I would have thought that you and Leo…"

"…are just FRIENDS!" he almost yelled he reply in his brother's face. "Despite what father thinks."

They were within sight of the Tornabouni offices and Ezio took the opportunity to stomp off quickly. He knew Federico would not follow him to his place of work. His older brother made it a point to avoid the place. Once, many years ago, he too was apprenticed to Giovanni Tornabouni, but the work never really suited Federico and he often tried to sneak off halfway during the day. He eventually was "let off" because he hid a bag of money on the rooftop as part of a prank to scare one of the other apprentices he didn't quite like.

The day passed rather drearily for the young man. It seemed as if every other customer at the bank were giving him odd stares. He almost wished that his father was indeed some murderer. At least there would be a good reason for all the unwanted "attention" he was getting from the general populace of Florence.

"Excuse me, did you see my father Signor Vespucci?"

Ezio raised his head and looked into the brown eyes of the most beautiful thing that walked the face of the earth. Momentarily dumbfounded, he raised a finger to point at the closed door where her father was meeting with Signor Tornabouni.

"He's with Signor Tornabouni," he added after quite a spell after he noticed the frown of confusion on her face. "Please, do take a seat signorina-"

She plopped herself down on a nearby chair without answering his question. As the minutes ticked away, Ezio found himself unable to concentrate on his work with such a lovely creature just a few feet from him. He finally reached into his desk drawer to pull out the sketchbook in which he sometimes doodled when visiting Leonardo in his studio and began a new drawing. After a few minutes, he was so focused on outlining the rough features of her face that he didn't notice the shadow that loomed just right in front of his desk.

"What are you doing?"

He awoke from his artistic stupor, almost in shock, nearly hitting the chin of the "lovely creature" who had bent over to look at his drawing. Apologizing quickly, he hastily pulled a ledger over his sketchbook.

"Nothing. It is…" he stopped midway through his denial, quietly chiding himself for his cowardliness.

"I'm sketching," he pulled out his sketchbook and showed it to the young maiden. She flipped through the pages, an amused smile playing on her lips.

"I would like to paint you!... I mean, paint a portrait… of you," he blurted out quickly before she could make a comment about his sketchings, which Leonardo often corrected.

He waited for a reply, but the moments passed without words as the maiden's lips widened to a giggle.

"I… I'm sorry… my name is…"

"Ezio Auditore, yes I know who you are," Ezio almost rolled his eyes. Practically everyone knew who he was these days.

"Christina," she held out her hand, which he kissed in proper gentlemanly fashion, although his lips were tingling for a long time after that.

Although the door to Tornabouni's office swung open right at that inopportune moment, Ezio never noticed the odd look that Signor Vespucci was giving him.

"Yes, you may… paint a portrait of me," she smiled as she left the bank with her father.

As soon as she disappeared from view, Ezio's brow wrinkled into a deep frown. His paintings were even worse than his sketchings.

Seeing his distress, the old banker put a hand on his shoulder, "Don't worry, my boy, at the end of the day, women will always pick a man who can provide her with a comfortable life."

Ezio's heart was singing. In an almost automatic response, he left his workplace earlier that day, missing Federico completely and practically ran to his friend's studio to tell him about Christina and probably ask for help with the painting. He spotted his friend carrying a bunch of paintings at the corner of a street near his studio. Although initially cautious, Leonardo's face lit up once Ezio waved and started to walk towards him.

"Ezio!" a firm hand weighed down on his shoulder pulling him back.

Looking around quickly, he stared into the worried face of his brother. Looking back again at Leonardo, the artist stopped in his tracks, quickly turned and walked away. Tears welling in his eyes, the young man wanted to follow his friend, but his brother's firm hand held him back.

Nearly every day for 2 weeks, Ezio stopped by the Vespucci house after work to paint Christina's portrait. Although her father gave him some odd looks at the beginning, he soon ignored the unassuming youth, leaving him free to spend time alone with his lovely daughter. Despite his own misgivings about his ability to paint, Christina's portrait turned out rather well. She seemed genuinely impressed by his ability and one fine day decided to walk home with him.

As they turned down a quiet street near the Vespucci home, a familiar and unwelcome figure approached them from the other end. Vieri de' Pazzi, the foul-tempered, spoiled son of Francesco de' Pazzi quickly made his way towards the pair. Personally Ezio seldom had any encounters with Vieri and his friends, however, his brother Federico had gotten into a few brawls with them in the past few months.

"You would choose to associate yourself with this... degenerate... over me?" Vieri sneered as he neared the pair. "I grow tired Christina, of waiting for you to… open your legs."

Ezio quickly stepped in front of Christina. "Leave now Vieri... or I'll..."

"Or you'll what? You want to challenge me?" he moved threateningly towards the young man.

"Stop..."

In a single, swift motion, Vieri's fist shot out and struck Ezio on the side of the face. A second quick swing from his left caught the young man on his mouth, which started bleeding immediately. Dazed by the blows, Ezio reeled backwards. Suddenly he felt a hand over his face, pushing him backward as his attacker swiftly lifted one of his legs and sent him crashing onto the hard cobblestone road. As the back of his head smashed against the hard stone, he was reminded again of that fateful day when, staring up into the azure sky, his wings were clipped and he spun downwards into the dirt.

Vieri dropped a knee on Ezio's chest and pulled out a dagger from his belt.

"I'm going to give you a new opening on your face, sodomite," he drew the cruel blade of the dagger deep over Ezio's bleeding lips.

A loud and agonizing sound escaped from his lips, as he felt the blade, like a burning brand dragged across his mouth. Then, almost as quickly, he felt the weight lifted off his chest and he heard a familiar voice.

"I'll kill you, Pazzi!"

Ezio tilted his head just enough to see Vieri stumbling to get up, only to be punched in the face by his brother. A further few quick blows by Federico sent the bully running, swearing terrible vengeance on the brothers and their accursed family.

"Oh my god, Ezio!" Christina rushed towards the young man. Kneeling she drew out a handkerchief to stop the bleeding from his mouth.

Despite the pain and profuse bleeding, Ezio felt a light, tingling sensation in his heart as he saw himself reflected in Christina's limpid eyes while her soft hands cradled his face.

The best thing about Christina was also the worst thing. She could be kind to the helpless and show compassion to those in distress, however, the true desires of her heart were not always evident in her actions. The incident with Vieri resulted in her lasting friendship, but not her admiration and certainly not her desire, as Ezio discovered. Unfortunately, the cut that Vieri gave him turned into a rather distinctive scar and it would have been a scar that Ezio would have worn proudly, if not for the fact that Christina asked both brothers to come over when she was sitting for the portrait that he was painting.

It soon became evident to the younger Auditore that Christina was very much attracted to his older brother, and sadly, not to him. Ezio thought about confronting Federico regarding the blossoming relationship, after all, he was the one who had initiated the chase, but decided against it. His brother seemed unaware of his sibling's attraction to the young lady.

As the scar healed over, Ezio made sure that his hair was as long as his father's so that it would cover that awful mark on his face. Since he had the habit of walking around with his gaze perpetually fixed on the ground before him, he bent his head downwards a little more so that his dark, shoulder-length hair dropped like a veil over his mark of shame. The black cloud of depression that so often beset him in the past reared its ugly head and made him so miserable that he found it impossible to complete his painting. Moreover, Christina did not press him for it since there was another more attractive distraction in her view.

Eventually, as winter drew the year 1475 to a close, he stopped going over to Christina's. The only comfort that he drew from his current situation was that his brother no longer tailed him like a shadow to and from work. Although he would have liked to stop by the studio to see his friend, he noticed some men from the Office of the Night hanging around each time he passed by Leonardo's workplace.

One dark December evening, as Ezio made his way home from the Tornabouni offices, he passed by the Ponte Vecchio. Staring into the dark waters beneath the bridge, he wondered if it would be better for the whole world if he jumped in and allowed himself to sink. As his thoughts slowly drifted like the cold vapour from his breath, he heard a scream from a nearby alley. Despite his depressive mood, something instinctual caused him to pick up speed and run towards the direction of the sound. Down a dark and rather narrow alleyway, he saw the familiar figure of Vieri pinning a struggling courtesan to the wall.

"... I assure you, you will be quite sore in the morning," he leered at the frightened brunette, his hand moving up her short skirt.

There was a brief moment where the thought of simply walking away entered the young man's mind, but something inside of Ezio snapped and he found himself running towards Vieri, shoulder forward as he barreled into the nobleman's chest. Caught completely off guard, Vieri fell backwards onto the cobblestone street, his limbs flailing helplessly. Instinct made Ezio move forward, his foot shot out to give the noble scum a sharp kick to the ribs. Unfortunately for the young Auditore, who spent years suppressing his own natural gifts and thus hesitated when closing the distance between himself and his opponent, Vieri managed to grab the oncoming foot, gave it a sharp twist and sent the young man falling sideways onto the ground.

As his chest hit the ground, Ezio felt Vieri throw his weight on his back as he twisted the young man's hand and forearm to a position where he could not move it.

"Pezzo di merda!" he screamed into the young man's ear. "Pompinara! Sorca!... I'll show you what happens to women and… girly men who think they can fight me!"

He began to tear at Ezio's pants, pulling them downwards. "And it WILL be long and painful… just like for this puttana here…"

A great terror welled up inside of Ezio, it pressed against the seams of his own consciousness almost to the point of bursting. But something, some small fire inside of him refused to submit and he struggled with all his might. This was one time he knew he had to win, in spite of the odds. Unfortunately, Vieri was indeed much better trained and stronger than he was, and he found that the scum knew how to twist his wrist to the point it almost popped out of its socket.

Crack!

Suddenly, he felt Vieri release him. Rolling around quickly, he saw the young noble clutching a bleeding head. A short distance away, a brunette courtesan stood, one hand raised, holding a bloodied stone. Vieri screamed a curse at the woman, a moment that gave Ezio just enough time to act. In an instant that he would long remember, time seemed to slow to a crawl as he jumped straight at Vieri, knocking him flat on the ground. Even before the scum's head hit the floor, he threw his entire body weight onto Vieri's chest and sat on him as his fists repeatedly pounded the nobleman's skull. With a strength that he never knew he had, Ezio turned Vieri's face into a bloodied mass in swift seconds. His mind was a haze of red and he was only dimly aware that bone was breaking under his knuckles.

"Stop! Stop, you are killing him!" the courtesan shouted into his ear, her own slender arms pulling his with all her might.

At this point, Ezio woke up from his maddened stupor. He stared in horror at the unrecognizable mess that was Vieri's face. He quickly stumbled off the still form of his attacker.

"My God! My God! What have I done?"

Ezio raised his hands slowly to his face, staring at the bloody gore they were covered in. He began to whimper and tears flooded his eyes. Then, he heard shouts from the street, vaguely he recognized them to be the voices of some of Vieri's friends. He froze in terror as they descended on the alley and spotted him before he could turn and flee.

Just as he thought he was going to end up a dead man floating down the Arno, a cloaked and hooded figure jumped out of the shadows between him and Vieri's friends. Swiftly, with inhuman speed, this stranger blocked an oncoming blow from the first of Vieri's friends and with a turn of his body, sent the youth sprawing onto the ground with a dislocated shoulder. This caused a blockage in the narrow alleyway and the young men nearly stumbled over each other to prevent themselves from tripping over their prone friend. One of the youths in the front of the jam pulled out a dagger and attempted to strike the stranger, but amazingly the hooded man caught the youth's wrist, and with a bone crunching twist that Ezio had never seen anyone perform, disarmed the poor fool before reverse striking him with his own weapon.

Despite the imminent danger, Ezio found himself strangely attracted to the graceful flow of the stranger's actions. Like the cobra of an Indian snake charmer, he was mesmerized by what he saw.

"Quick, this way!" the courtesan pulled at Ezio's sleeve, dragging him down the alley and away from the danger.

Once he started moving, Ezio felt a cold fear in his belly. He ran after the brunette as fast as he could. However, she knew the alleyways better than him and he lost her in the maze of Florence's streets. Eventually, he stopped by a public fountain and washed his hands in the icy water. As the bloody stream flowed into the basin and down into the drain below, his thoughts contorted themselves into a dizzying whirlpool. He began to cry softly as the terror of what might happen to him once Vieri's friends reported the incident to the Pazzi's filled his mind.

He stumbled home as quickly as he could, straightening his clothes so that no one who was awake at that hour would see what happened to him. Despite the hurry he was in, Ezio decided to take a roundabout route through small alleyways and avoided the main streets. It was 2 hours before he managed to make his way home. He prayed that he would enter a dark and silent house.

Ezio sadly, never had much in the way of luck. As he limped into the courtyard of the Auditore home, he saw his brother at the door facing what appeared to be a very stern looking Giovanni.

"I swear papa, I did NOT beat up Vieri! Though I would thank the man who wounded him so grievously tonight."

"Federico…" there was a warning tone in his father's voice.

"It is the truth! I have not seen him since the day he tried to harass Signorina Vespucci."

Ezio tried to back away quietly. Maybe he could slip in through the servants' entrance at the other end of the house.

"Ezio!"

Ezio cursed silently.

"Come here!"

Slowly, he walked over to the doorway into the pool of light cast by the lamps inside the house.

"What in heaven's name happened to you?" his father's voice rang crisply in the night air. Looking up, he saw his mother and sister peering down through a second storey window at the commotion below.

"Nothing…" he whispered.

He tried to brush past his father and move into the house, but Giovanni's firm hand on his shoulder stopped him. Tears filled his eyes but he stubbornly prevented them from falling. He wanted to tell them all about Vieri and the awful thing that happened, but could not. The old gypsy's prophecy rang in his mind. Perhaps he indeed was devil-cursed and a monstrous killer hid in his heart. However, that was a secret his family must never know.

"I made love to a man!... A dozen men!" he screamed into his father's face. Shocked by the outburst, Giovanni loosened his grip on his son, and Ezio dashed blindly up the stairs to his room before slamming the door shut behind his entire family.

He curled up in a dark corner of his room, his hands over his face as he muffled his own loud sobs so no one could hear them.