Yes, it's an actual chapter, believe it or not!
I kind of tried to make this one at least worth the wait but... well I don't think I've managed that but I still hope you enjoy it enough to not sue me xD
Warm. It was so warm. What was this feeling called? It has been so long since he felt it that he forgot that it even existed. All he knew was that he liked it. Very much. It reminded him of his mother. How she would caress his cheek and gently stroke his hair when he was sick or had trouble falling asleep. It helped him through tough times when his father kept shouting at him for how much of a disgrace he was as the son of the Mentor or when his training got harder and tougher but he was not allowed to take a short break. Come to think of it, he sometimes felt guilty about leaving the farm. He would've become a good Assassin. Maybe not as awesome as his ancestors but way better than he was now. Then there were times when he was glad he avoided to get mixed up in this war stuff. After Abstergo, though... after Abstergo he really hated himself for not remaining on the farm to train. He could've maybe defended himself, he often thought. He could have run faster, would've been stronger, could have seen the danger coming before it was right in front of him. But no. He left that live behind. Now the only thing he was good for was being stuck into some machine and slowly go crazy. Well, maybe he could at least stop the end of the world before that happens.
Before his thoughts could turn any more dark, he felt that warmth again, the caresses of his mother that he missed so much. He wanted to keep this feeling from going away but he felt his consciousness slowly starting to wake him from this dream. When he was conscious enough to be aware of his surroundings, the first thing he noticed was how well rested he felt. It felt like ages ago that he felt this well rested. The second thing was that he was not alone in his room, which brought back the memories of the day before. He had hoped that mess was all a dream but when he shook the last bit of sleep from his dazed mind his eyes flew open and he stared directly into the almost golden eyes of Altair Ibn-La'Ahad. Time seemed to freeze as their eyes were locked onto the other and neither of them wanted- could look away. It's like he was in a trance and the longer he stared, the stronger this weird tingling sensation got that started in the pit of his stomach and went up to his throat, trying to push out the tears welling up behind his eyes and he didn't even know why.
The realization of this made him finally avert his eyes to avoid the older man from seeing him cry, for whatever reason. He thought that this was how pregnant women must feel. It's like his brain went to a themepark and his feelings are taking a ride on a rollercoaster with too many loopings. He didn't understand any of his feelings anymore. And to avoid thinking any more about it and feel even more confused he slowly got up from his bed where Altair was still sitting, watching his every move much like the Italian Assassin, who sat not far away from the bed on the ground, leaned against the wall with his back and one leg pulled close to himself to support his arm.
"Rebecca should have the machine ready by now so I need to go back into the Animus. You two can... either wait here or come down with me. Though, I guess it doesn't make much of a difference." Desmond scratched his neck awkwardly and didn't wait for any of the men to react to him before making his way downstairs to get ready for another session.
"So this is that Animus you told us about?" Ezio asked after the two Master Assassins had followed Desmond downstairs. Desmond nodded as he made his way over to the strange machine.
"Oh, Des! Good timing. I checked baby thoroughly and it seems the error was caused completely by the Apple so you don't have to worry." Rebecca smiled reassuringly. Desmond still worried. He always worried when going into that THING but he didn't tell Rebecca that. She was almost like a sister to him, he didn't want her to worry when they couldn't change anything about it. "Lucy and Shaun are out getting some things." she continued after seeing Desmond look around.
"Thanks, Becca. For making the Animus... you know..." he trailed off while scratching his neck, a habit he took up while at Abstergo.
"Hey, don't worry about it. I just wish I could make it even more compatible." she smiled at him that Rebecca smile again, making him instantly feel less anxious. He smiled back at her before lying down on the bed-like machine and waited for the session to start while his mind took up the train of thought from before again.
He knew Rebecca was as much against putting Desmond in there as he was. She just didn't say it directly, especially when Lucy and the Brit were around but he noticed the way her eyes would sadden when they told him to go back in like he was some machine himself. Sometimes it didn't feel much different than from being held by Abstergo. The biggest differences were, that he went in by his own choice (more or less) and that he got more breaks than before. But he couldn't really talk 'normally' with either of them. Shaun was made of 80% sarcasm and 20% tea. Lucy was, well, Lucy. Of course he was thankful that he had someone to talk to at Abstergo, if only for a minute a day, and he was even more thankful that she got Desmond out of there but the way she was so emotionless most of the time... he couldn't get used to it. It sometimes scared him how much she seemed to resemble Vidic in that aspect. He didn't talk as much to Rebecca, either. Not as much as he wanted to, but he didn't want the other two to notice that she was against Desmond using the Animus. It would only cause problems in their group and that was the last thing they needed now.
All in all he was kind of reliefed to have the two Master Assassins here now, even though it was still pretty awkward. But he felt like he knew them and it would be a lie to say that didn't make Desmond feel a ton better. The only problem was, that he still pretty much had a crush on them, which felt pretty weird now that they were actually there. He didn't really think that much about it before, with them being dead and all, but now...
His train of thought was interrupted when the session was at a point where it started to get interesting again. Connor was getting close to the 'key'.
He didn't notice when Lucy and Shaun came back or the two Master Assassins taking a seat nearby to watch the groups every step or Desmonds dead-like body twitch when in a fight.
From time to time his hands or feet would twitch like a dreaming dog when he lived through memories with more action. When Connor was shot or badly injured in any way, Desmond would even let out a small pained grunt or whine and tense up before falling limp again.
It was silent in the room except for the humming of different machines, the heavy rain that drummed against the few windows the room had and the sound of fingers tapping away at a keyboard. The two Master Assassins sat silently not far away from the sleeping figure and switched from varily eying the trio to closing their eyes as if to meditate. Occassionaly they would glance at their descendant especially when they saw the other move around from the corner of their eye.
They were worried. They didn't know what that machine does or how it worked. From what Desmond told them they kind of got that it let him relive certain memories of his ancestors. But how does it work? Does it have any side-effects? Does it hurt him? They didn't know much about machines but they didn't like the feeling they got regarding this Animus. And the looks Desmond shared with that black-haired girl when they seemed to talk about him going in didn't make it any better.
Desmond let out a pained groan and shifted around which made the whole group look at him as he hauled himself up from the Animus. When he tried to stand up his knees gave out but Altair was already at his side, catching his weakened body without effort.
"Sorry, don't feel so good." he grunted out and bolted up the stairs at full speed before anyone could ask what was wrong. Most of the crew already knew the answer, though.
It had been a while since he last felt this shitty after a session. Altair and Ezio followed him, worried at what was going on. When they arrived updstairs they heard violent coughing and gagging from the bathroom. They rushed towards the painful sounds to see their descendant sitting in front of the toilet with his head down, hands gripping tightly at the bowl as he was emptying his stomach content.
When Desmond finally stopped after several more minutes of dry heaving, he slumped back against Altair's chest, who had knelt down beside him to press a rough hand against Desmond's forhead and the smaller man sighed at the blissful feeling those cool hands gave him against his feverish skin. How he would love to just let consciousness go and sleep against the other man's chest but instead he tried to get to his feet only to have his knees give out again and the pulsating headache didn't help there, either. He sacked down into Altair's arms once more before being lifted off the ground, bridal style. Desmond was surprised but too tired to protest in any way so he just let it be and savored the feeling of being in the Syrian's arms, resting his head against the other's shoulder. Sleep came faster than he thought and Altair looked down at the boy in his arms, a deep sigh leaving his scarred lips. He placed the limp body on the bed, covering him with a blanket.
An hour later, Desmond was shaken awake by memories of blood, death and pain. His body trembled and his eyes couldn't focus on anything as the scene was still playing in front of his eyes. Not before a hand stroked through his short locks did he realize that there was someone else around. When he could finally focus his eyes again, he saw Altair gazing down at him.
"Sleep." his deep voice was not more than a whisper but Desmond loved the gentleness in it. He tried to stay awake because Altair looked like he wanted to ask something but if the Syrian had voiced it out, he didn't stay conscious long enough to hear it.
"Is he asleep again?" came Ezio's voice from the door as he entered the room with a small bucket with water and a washcloth. He only got a nod as an answer before they shared a meaningful look for a few seconds. They had some questions in store for Desmond when he was awake enough to answer them.
I'm sorry it's so short again but I promise the next one is going to be longer.
No, it will NOT take as long as this one to be up. Probably. I'm a busy woman! Being unemployed and all that... *sighs*