[A/N]: Thanks for reading! Feedback is always welcome!

I think this chapter is a bit longer than usual, but I really like this scene in the game, so…

Chapter 67

Ezio decided that a walk would do him some good.

It had been several months since Carnevale. Antonio had been away on unknown (but apparently important) business for several weeks. The thieves, who had little to do without him, were getting restless as a consequence.

The city was getting uncomfortably humid as the day in late June wore on, but Ezio wasn't thinking about comfort.

"Such impatience for a man who has waited so long. You'll find out soon enough, Assassin."

Ezio found a bench near the Piazza San Marco and sat down to try to clear his mind, but Maffeo's final words rang in his head. In fact, they had been ringing in his head for months, but they were troubling him more severely on this particular day.

Ezio far from an Assassin, for one thing. Whatever reason his father and Mario had for wanting these men dead was not his own reason. Ezio simply wanted justice, and he had told his enemies as much.

This was the second thing that troubled him. He had waited a long time for this justice. Even if he were to kill the Spaniard, it wouldn't replace the years of a normal life that had been taken from him. Would the trade pay off in the end? So far, it hadn't. His quest for revenge had taken him all the way to Venezia, and he had nothing worthwhile to show for the journey and time he had spent there, with the exception of-

"There you are, Ezio. Why so serious?"

Ezio recognized Rosa's voice but didn't look up. "It's my birthday," he told her.

"Davvero?" she asked as she put a hand on his shoulder. "Cento di questi giorni! That's wonderful!"

"Is it?" he kept his gaze fixed on the ground. "It's been over ten years since I watched my father and brothers die. Ten years hunting the men responsible."

He still didn't look up, but he could sense her frowning. He sighed. "I'm so close to the end now, but no closer to understanding what any of it was for."

There was an uncomfortable silence for a few moments before Rosa replied.

"You may not see it, Ezio, but it's better here because of the things you've done."

Ezio scoffed. "I find that difficult to believe. Since I've been here, Venezia can't seem to keep a Doge alive for more than a few years."

"This city has been my home for over two decades," she reminded him. "Venezia is more than her ruler."

He didn't respond.

"Basta," she told him as she sat down with him. "Look here. I have a birthday present for you."

He finally glanced up to find that she had produced a small book and was holding it out for him. He gave her a quizzical look.

"It's L'Arsenale's shipping manifest…from the day the boat left."

His eyes widened as he reached for it. "The boat to Cyprus? You're serious?"

As he reached, she pulled it away from him playfully, forcing him to reach across her chest and lean his face in close to hers.

"And guess when it's scheduled to return," she added, getting his attention on herself again. "Tomorrow."

As he looked in her eyes, he almost wondered if she was playing a trick on him, but he knew she wouldn't do that with something this important. Still, she was certainly playing with him, and he wondered what he would have to do to get his present. She was ever impossible to read.

Yes, he thought to himself. She was the exception. The thief who had stolen his heart. Stolen his time. Time that would have been lost obsessing over things he had done wrong…men he had let escape…answers he hadn't found.

Stolen perhaps, but not wasted. His time was never wasted with her. He smiled at that thought. She smiled back.

"Ezio!"

It was another voice he recognized, but certainly not one he was expecting to hear at that moment.

"Leonardo!" he faced his friend. "When did you get back?"

"Just now. I need to talk to you. Right away!" The painter seemed out of breath.

"I'm a little busy at the moment," Ezio explained, pointing to Rosa.

"Go on," Rosa chuckled. "Have fun, boys." She handed him the book.

Ezio took it, and immediately turned back to Leonardo. "This better be good," he warned his friend (in jest).

Leonardo didn't laugh, though. Something very serious was clearly on his mind. "Oh, it is, it is," he assured Ezio. "Walk with me. Stay close."