I don't know about you people out there but school starts for me this Tuesday on the 28th of August. I'm not sure if I'm excited that the boredom of summer is over or dreading the work all my AP and honors classes will give me. I think I'll warn you that Chapter output will most likely go down once school starts but I'll come to the library every day after school to work on my chapters. I will prevail!

I don't any of the Assassin's Creed games or characters but I own my OCs.

Onward!

Chapter 12: On the Road

I stood by the gates to the village with my pack over my shoulder and my eye on a saddled black mare the stable boys put out for Assassins who needed to leave in a hurry. This black mare had a certain air around her and she kept sidling closer casually. She would nibble a patch of grass here, take a few steps closer to me, and then munch on another bunch of grass. Her brown eyes seemed to be watching me, but I couldn't tellfor sure in the predawn darkness.

I sensed someone coming up behind me and turned, expecting to see Altair coming down the street, but saw the last person I wanted to encounter at the moment. "Safety and peace,Abbas," I greeted. Any sleepiness I once had was shaken away so I was on guard around this snake of a man.

I bristled when he didn't say the greeting back and instead said, "So you decided to defend that traitor." It wasn't a question.

My eyes narrowed. If my wings were out right now they would've been shifting against each other and just starting to puff up. My wings were always a dead give away to what I was feeling, like a cat's tail always told you if it was angry. "And you decided to repeat last night's incident." Mine wasn't a question either.

Abbas' dark brown, almost black, eyes glittered in the darkness menacingly. He raised his head proudly and looked down his nose at me. "Not at all," he responded. "I would not want to entice your anger. I simply came here to tell you that you might want to reconsider who you defend. It may have its consequences."

Behind Abbas I saw a white figure come down the hill. "Be on your way, Abbas. You're holding up yet another mission. You seem to be making a habit of this. May be I should report you."

The snake snorted and turned on heel to disappear between the houses. "Do as you wish, Master Assassin," his taunting voice called back.

I looked after him before I sensed something behind me and spun. The black mare was nose to nose with me. I looked her over and had the faint feeling she was doing the same. After a moment's pause I asked, "What do you want?" The horse tossed its head and whinnied. She then turned so I was at her side and her saddle directly in front of me. I raised an eyebrow as the mare turned her head to look at me. "So I'm taking you with me?" I asked. The horse eerily tossed her head as if in a nod. I shrugged and tied my pack on to her saddle, "I don't care who comes with me." She whinnied softly in reply.

"If you're so desperate for company that you're talking to a horse I would've come faster," Altair taunted as he came to the gates.

I ran a hand over the black mare's muscled neck. "I don't know. May be I prefer a horse's company to yours, Altair," I teased in a serious voice. I instantly felt anxious. Did I say that correctly? Should I have made it more obvious I was teasing?

My worries were laid to rest when Altair snorted. He stopped in front of the mare and threw a disdainful eye over her, "A horse's company better than mine? You would rather have this dumb flea bag to talk to than me?" Before I could respond the mare's head shot forward and latched on to Altair's hood. She pulled and Altair stumbled, shouting in surprise. The horse released the Assassin and danced away on quick hooves, neighing merrily. Altair cursed and his hidden blade flashed out. "You just signed your own death contract, horse," he growled. The horse whinnied and it sounded suspiciously like a laugh.

I stepped forward and laid a staying hand on his arm. Even though my touch was light and almost nonexistent, Altair still stopped and looked at me. I chuckled, "Peace, Altair. I did not mean to bruise your pride. I only suggested that I may like to talk to the horse. Do not kill her."

He looked between me and the whinnying/laughing horse quickly. "But she's laughing at me!" he protested.

I smiled and approached the black mare. "No how could a horse laugh, Altair? You said yourself that she was a 'dumb flea bag'." I saw Altair flounder for a response before turning and marching to a white steed with dignity. I faced the suddenly silent horse and could almost believe she was glaring at me. I held up my hands and motioned to the man who was mounting, "I was only repeating what he said. I think you're a very intelligent beautiful horse." The horse huffed and relaxed. I went to her side and pulled myself up into the saddle. I grabbed the reigns in one hand and tapped the mare's sides to go up next to an angrily silent Altair. "Let's go, Altair. We have three days of travel ahead of us." He didn't respond. He just kicked his horse into a canter and my horse followed.

We ate breakfast in the saddle since it was still cool enough that the horses didn't need a break. We rode in silence over the dirt and rock terrain. The cliffs that had surrounded Masyaf and the village began to spread out and branch off into different paths to different villages, towns, or cities. The heat began to show itself an hour after dawn and it began to climb as the sun made its age old trek across the sky. We met a few people traveling on foot and ran into a few guards, but we spotted them well in advance and blended in by feigning to be weary travelersby ducking our heads and slowing our horses to an irritatingly slow walk. They gave us no more than a cursory glance and as soon as we were out of sight we would prod our horses back into a canter.

From the time we left until the early afternoon when we stopped before the heat got too bad I worried about Altair's silence. Had I really insulted him? Was he angry with me? I really hope not. I wasn't sure how I should apologize. I couldn't remember the last time I'd apologized. Should I gently lead up to an apology or just get right to the point? I decided to wing it, no pun intended.

"Altair," I called softly from my spot in the shade of a 'hmm'ed from five feet away. He was lying on his back with his hands behind his head and his eyes closed, letting the sun lull him into a nap. The horses were at the oasis' banks drinking water and chatting amongst themselves. "I'm sorry if I angered you this morning," I blurted.

Altair lifted his head and frowned at my, his eyes only half open, "Angered? What? No, Shahin. We were just playing this morning. I'm not angry at you." He dropped his head back on to the sand and it was my turn to frown in confusion.

"Then why were you silent all day?" I asked, cocking my head to the side. I've never gone on a mission with someone else, but shouldn't you talk to your travel companion when you do?

"There was nothing to talk about," he answered shortly.

I instantly felt awkward. "Oh," I murmured. I shouldn't have asked, I thought as I picked up a stick and started to doodle in the sand. Now he's irritated with me. How do I fix that? Should I even try? I only irritated him when he wasn't angry in the first place by trying to fix something. I drew my knees to my chest and hugged them with one arm. Thoughts were whirling through my head as I absently drew a bird.

A few moments passed before Altair sat up and looked at me. He was silent before saying, "Shahin, I'm not mad at you. I was simply thinking while we rode this morning. I assumed you were too and didn't want to interrupt."

"So it's normal to travel in silence?" I asked stupidly before turning my face away when I felt my cheeks heat.

"You've never been on a mission with anybody?" he questioned, sounding a little surprised. I shook my head and he continued, "Yes, It's normal to travel without talking to your partner. But it's also normal to talk with them. It just depends on the people and the situation."

I nodded slowly and took this information in. "Okay," I murmured in acknowledgement before going back to doodling. Altair fell back down on to the sand. The horses joined us a little later and I looked up at the sun to judge the time. "Altair," I called again. He grunted but didn't open his eyes. I stood up and dusted the sand off my leggings. "We should get going." He grunted again, but didn't budge until I was mounted on my horse. He got up slowly and stiffly got into his horse's saddle. Apparently I had woken him form a nap. "You shouldn't nap on the roads, Altair," I chastised in an unreadable voice. His hood turned towards me and I continued. "What if I wasn't here and a group of bandits decided to rob the lone traveler?"

He faced forward, "It doesn't matter because you were here."

I scoffed and toed my horse to catch up to his, "It does matter. We need to always be on alert, Altair. If you were stiff and slow in a fight you would have been injured. You can't risk injuries for a nap."

"I wouldn't have been stiff and slow and I certainly wouldn't get injured," he snapped, sounding a bit more awake now. "I have more skill and experience than to get hurt in a fight."

"That is your arrogance speaking, Altair," I stated, leaning forward in an effort to catch his eyes and failed. "The last time you let your arrogance go you failed a mission, hurt those with you, and you yourself was severely punished. Do you so badly want to repeat that experience?" I asked with a bit of an edge to my voice. He growled but said nothing. I wasn't sure if I had gotten through to him. I dropped back a few paces so I could keep an eye on Altair and our surroundings.

We passed through a few villages at a very slow pace thanks to the abnormal amount of guards. Those bandits arebecoming an issue if this many guards were being called to watch over the villages, I thought as we cantered away from the last village of the day. My eyes were moving all over the place form the tops of the cliffs to rocks and boulders on the side of the trail in search for any sign of this group of bandits. I would have to listen to the news in Damascus for information. I'd only heard that there was a troubling group of outlaws attacking people traveling to and from Damascus, but not what made them troubling.

Altair wordlessly guided his horse to the side of the road and dismounted. This was the place where we would camp tonight. We took down our packs and bedrolls and I set about gathering wood for a fire as Altair squared away the camp area and got the food ready. I came back a few minutes later with an armful of wood. Altair watched as my gloved hands went about making the fire.

We ate in silence and after we were done I shook out my bed roll and sat on it. Altair's silence was bothering me and I almost regretted scolding him this afternoon. Almost. He needed to be on alert. He didn't seem to grasp the fact that he wasn't invincible.

I looked up at the darkening sky and the stars that were coming into sight. I would have to keep watch tonight. I could try and wake Altair up to take up a second watch in the middle of the night, but, after this afternoon, I don't think he'd do as I asked. I sighed as I realized I had created a small rift between us. I didn't like that rift, but if I had to create that drift in order to try and keep Altai safe than I would keep doing so.

My eyes were following the same path they did on the road as I kept on the lookout for bandits when Altair asked, "Do you hate me?"

I blinked in shock and instantly turned towards the man who was staring into the fire. I had a feeling of déjà vu as I realized I'd asked that very question yesterday. "Why would you ask that? I don't hate you," I replied. Altair was silent until I repeated, "Why would you ask that, Altair?"

"Everyone else seems to hate me with good reason. I just don't know if you also hate me and are just hiding it." He said this quietly enough that I had to strain my ears to hear him.

I shook my head, "I don't hate you. I never have."

"Then what do you feel about my failure? About Kadar andMalik? About my punishment?"

The former Master Assassin was sitting tensely across the fire and I knew my answer really mattered to him, whether he wanted to admit he cared about anything or not. I answered honestly, "I'm sad."

My companion's head came up and his sharp golden eyeslooked me over before he admitted, "I don't understand."

I went back to scanning for bandits or trouble as I answered. "I am sad about everything. So much unnecessary blood was spilt. Innocent, ally, and enemy blood. I am sad because everyone is blinded by their hatred towards you. I am sad because you have taken a very long and hard fall."

He shook his head slightly. "How can you not hate me? It's my fault that all those things happened." Confusion colored his voice many colors.

I sighed and reached up to push my hood back. I closed my eyes and fished my braid out of my tunics to rest over my shoulder. I could feel Altair's surprise at my sudden revealing. I smiled sadly at the shocked man, "You really don't know, do you?" I paused, but got no answer. "I will tell you this so you believe what I say next. I do not lie. I may keep some things to myself but I never tell an outright lie. So believe me when I say I don't blame you for anything. The fighting, the deaths?" I shook my head. "I don't blame you for any of it."

"How?" he demanded softly, not moving a muscle, not even breathing.

I raised an eyebrow, "How can I not blame you? makes mistakes. We're human, Altair. We wouldn't be if we never made mistakes. We would never grow up if we didn't. We would never become wise and skilled without mistakes. I'm not angry with you because every second of everyday someone out there in the world is making just a big a mistake as you did. You didn't intend to harm the Brotherhood, did you?" He shook his head. "And you'll try not to make this mistake again, right?" He nodded this time. "Good. If you had done all those things with the intention of hurting our Brothers then I would've been angry. But what you did is something you will probably never repeat again in this lifetime. Plus you are being punished and hated enough without me adding my lot. Do you understand?"

He nodded slowly and pushed back his hood as well. His face was blank, but I could tell he was… relieved. "I do." He paused before saying, "Thank you."

I blinked in shock again. I think that's the first time he's said thank you to me, I thought. "For what?" I asked.

His amber eyes met my golden ones, "For explaining. For not blaming me. For not hating me. For everything."

I smiled a small smile. "I told you I would always be by your side."

He nodded and smiled again. "Yes, you did. Just like friends do."

That warmth increased in my chest and I couldn't help but hum. Altair's eyes took in the action as my eyes wandered back to keeping watch. We're friends now! I thought happily. "Get some sleep. I'll wake you later for second watch."

He nodded and laid down on his bedroll. I stayed up half the night watching the shadows within the darkness before I woke Altair.

—Day 2—

The second day was different than the first. We talked most of the time. It started right when we were both in the saddle. I thought today would be like yesterday since Altair hadn't said much during breakfast, but I was wrong.

"Why do you keep your hair so long?" he asked ten seconds after getting in the saddle.

I looked at him from the corner of my eye as I prodded my horse into a canter. I wondered why he suddenly asked this. Did he suspect that I saw a woman? I pushed away the slight fear and answered honestly, "I wear it long as a reminder."

He cocked his head to the side like I do. "But wouldn't it get in the way when you're fighting? Isn't it a hassle to care for it? And what's it a reminder of?"

I raised an eyebrow he couldn't see under my hood, which was up now that we were traveling. "Oh, are you back to trying to get information on me?" He didn't answer, just waited. "You ask a lot of questions. No, it doesn't get in the way since I always have it down the back of my tunics. And I'm used to caring for my hair so I wouldn't know." I purposely avoided his last question. I certainly couldn't tell him I wore it long to remind myself I was a woman.

"And what does your hair remind you of?" he repeated, noticing I hadn't answered that one.

I shook my head and sighed at my wasted effort, "That's something I want to keep to myself. How did you get that scar on your lip?"

He shrugged and looked away from me, "It was when I was on the streets in Jerusalem. It's from an encounter with the guards." I nodded in understanding. Altair glanced up at the sun before telling me, "We should be able to reach Damascus today. It'll be close to night fall, but we should make it."

I nodded again and we spent the rest of the day talking about menial things, like the weather in which regions, debating fighting techniques, telling stories, just passing the time. I was much happier talking than thinking that I'd angered my companion—no. My friend. Altair was my friend now.

We stopped briefly only once during the afternoon before continuing on, pushing to make it to Damascus that evening. We didn't run into any trouble from the guards or bandits, but that didn't stop me from being on full alert. Any lapse in attention could be troublesome or fatal.

The sun was just beginning to set when we came up one last hill and saw the proud city of Damascus in the land below us. I saw the tall towers circled with eagles and hawks, the imposing walls, churches, and many other buildings. Damascus was a beautiful city, filled with architectural achievements that added to the city's already natural pull.

But despite the beautiful view, Altair and I fell silent as we regarded the city with serious cold eyes. We had not forgotten why we were here.

We were here to take the first step in Altair's redemption by killing the black market merchant Tamir, who was somewhere in the sprawling city. And his days were numbered now that he had two Master Assassins on his trail.

BA BA BA BUUUUMMMMM! Cue the serious music! The road trip is over and it's time to get serious!

I'd still like ideas for Altair's abilities. I plan on revealing one while he's here in Damascus, so this is probably your last chance to get your ideas PMed to me. I won't turn any down. Please! Even if you think they're stupid send them to me. I love having people who are involved in my story! I won't turn down a single idea and I'll make sure I respond to each one of your PM's! Please send your ideas!

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Safety and Peace, Brothers and Sisters.