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[Good morning, Asgard, your bracelets are currently being serenaded with the sounds of crashing glass and muffled yelling and bunch of shuffling going on. It's probably not the first sound you'd expect, coming from this bracelet in particular, but after the recent escapade made by the Assassins who knows these days.

The racket you hear is continued for a few minutes, with breaks of actual words heard every so often- "let go," ""Ya Homaar!" "CAZZO!" The voices are somewhat distinguishable, and somewhat not. But when the sounds finally die there is a sound of a very frustrated Italian running his mouth off in a frenzy of insults.]

Ha una faccia tosta testa di merda! Sono incazzato! [There's sounds of angry struggling, and more incomprehensible swearing.] Let me go, stronzo!!

[For those within the shop A Needle in a Haystack, you can hear this entire commotion going on in one of the back storerooms. Which is getting entirely destroyed, by the way. You're welcome.]

Not until you speak the truth! Who are you, and what is your business here? What is this place?

How should I know, you are the one who's causing trouble!! Faccia di merda! GET OFF ME!

[There's a large WHUMF and the camera flicks on and smacks into the ground, the bracelet sliding off Altaïr's wrist and clattering across the floor. There's two men among the mess of what looks like a storage room, in white robes, one pinning the other to the floor. For those who know the voices, they will recognize that Altaïr is the one holding the other down- and the one on the ground sounds awfully familiar. Like Ezio, only… younger?]

I will ask you once more. Give me your name and return my blades, and I may spare your life.

[Ezio hisses angrily.] I don't have your blades! You have mine! Give me back my father's blade now-

Enough of your foolishness. You had your chance.

[With a sudden twist to the side, Ezio manages to escape Altaïr's pin and rolls to his feet. He rushes Altaïr in an attempt to gain the upper hand, only to essentially be suplexed and hit the floor with a loud thump. A cry of pain escapes him as the wind gets knocked out of his lungs, and Altaïr lets go long enough to grab the bracelet and cut off the feed there.]

[ooc: As punishment for their hubris as the ringleaders of this little expedition, Altaïr and Ezio have been cursed to become younger versions of themselves—Ezio is 19, and just from his killing of Vieri di Pazzi and Altaïr from one day before the incident at Solomon's Temple. Which means they're jerks now. The curse will last for three IC days. Have fun! Also, threadjacking is highly encouraged.. Bracelet replies will come after an IC delay once they stop fighting and get curious about the talking jewelry.]

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[Altaïr just looks back at them, waiting for a reaction that will mean anything to him. They look surprised, though he can't imagine why. The younger man's response is no surprise to him, however-of course they want him to believe they are allies, to keep him placated.]

I know all those who give their loyalty to the brotherhood, and you are not among them. [Odd, though, they they speak of it with such familiarity. The existence of the Hashashin is known to many in the Holy Land, but few are familiar with more than the name.]

You'd best stand aside and...

[Altaïr trails off as he really looks at Desmond's for the first time. In an instant he's charging forward again, not to attack but to get a closer look. Why does this man look so similar to him?]

What is this sorcery?!

[ Desmond keeps himself from reflexively taking a step back, squaring his shoulders. ]

Right, look...

[ He pinches the bridge of his nose, squinting. ]

They pull people into Asgard from different times and places. I'm your descendent, Desmond.

[ He lowers his voice, talking quickly, carefully, searching Altaïr's face. ]

You were traveling with Malik Al-Sayf and Kadar Al-Sayf. Al Mualim has sent you to Jerusalem, to Solomon's Temple, to retrieve the treasure the Templars have there.

We are not Templars, Altaïr, we are not conspirators or spies, we are Assassins.

[Whoa what.

What.

What.

There's this whole Bureau and Brotherhood and Assassins and missions and it's making Ezio's head spin. He makes a face and raises his hands at that, not wanting to know anything else of what Desmond is saying.]

I have no interest in your Brotherhood or your Bureau or whatever else you may call this.

[He gestures, indicating the entire clusterfuck around them.]

I am going to avenge my family, as I planned to do before coming here.

[He looks like a concoction between a deer caught in the headlights and indignant, stepping back a few paces to give himself space.]

Keep your group as you wish, I want no part of it.

[Excuse him, he's just going to turn on his heel and make his way out the door. BYE LOSERS.]

Ezio wait, hold on. If you give us a moment I am sure your sister Claudia will be able to confirm everything Desmond has just told you.

[She holds up her hands, her wrist feeling much better thanks to Alastair's attention, and leaves her stance open and friendly.]

We are not your enemies here, and we did not do this to you. Every one of us in this place has been brought here against our will just as you, we've been taken from our families and our homes and brought to fight a battle that is not ours. I apologise for my husband, he is behaving like an ass and not himself.

[And then she turns her attention to the aforementioned ass.]

And for once in your life could you stop assuming that everything you don't understand is attributed to sorcery? Formidable though your mind may be my love, sometimes I fear you can be as dense as a brick.

Ezio, please, there's nothing you can do about avenging your family here, and there's no way to get home. It's hard to accept, but it's true.

[Alastair sounds like he understands, because he does. He knows exactly how Ezio feels, because he's felt the same way.]

We're not asking you to do anything or join us in any fight, we just want to help how we can.

[He keeps his attention to Ezio because that's who he understands right now. Anything he might try to say to Altaïr would probably come out wrong and not be a good choice of words, so he leaves him to the people who understand him better.]

[Most of this farce is so unbelievable, he shouldn't dignify it with a response. He should kill these people for their impertinence, and to keep them from impersonating the brotherhood, but...he has agreed to Al Mualim's test. Discretion may be the better option now.

But. He fixes his gaze on the woman for now, the corner of his lip curling up in a sneer.]

These men may be liars, but you speak as one crazed. Step aside and let me pass.

[He glances at Ezio, reconsidering. He has no more respect for the man than he did before, but he at least has the right idea. Neither of them want to be here.]

[The look on Altaïr's face is one so full of haughtiness and arrogance that for a split second, Maria is taken about by how unfamiliar his face seems while wearing it.

He doesn't recognise her, that much seems certain from the way he is looking at her and speaking to her, and to reveal to him who she was at the time he is from, where her loyalties laid, that will not help him trust her but she has never backed down from a challenge. She will find a way.]

I will not until you calm yourself and listen, and calling me crazed shall not sway me. This madness is not any of our making, it is the will of the gods of this place and we are slaves to it. We are not your enemies.

[She fixes her eyes upon him and tries to find the words to earn his trust.]

You do not know me, but in some months on from when you last remember we shall meet in Jerusalem. [Though she'll spare the specific details... probably for the best.] A year later our paths will cross again in Acre, and from there we will travel to Cyprus and onwards, and when we next return to Limassol together you will make me your wife. I know it is hard to believe when it has not happened for you, but I swear that the words I speak to you are the truth. Test me; ask me something only one dear to you would know.

[The others' lies make him angry, pretending to be Assassins as they do when he knows their faces are not those of his brothers, and even if he did not, he can see they have ten whole fingers.

But this woman. Despite her boldness, Altaïr is confident she is no threat. Despite that, her words set his blood to a slow boil. How dare she speak so familiarly to him, so matter-of-factly, as if the events she describes actually took place. As if he would ever feel enough for a woman to make her his.]

Cease your prattle and listen closely.

[Before anyone can stop him, he steps closer to Maria and grasps her upper arm, pulling her closer so she can hear him despite his low, icily-calm tone.]

Only one woman has been dear to me, and she is not you.

[He holds her gaze for a moment longer, then abruptly lets go.]

And never will be. I'll ask you nothing.

Now let me pass.

[His words are like a slap in the face, and despite the sick feeling that Maria feels in the pit of her stomach at seeing such ice-cold disdain from him directed at her, she refuses to move and raises her chin, keeping her gaze even and upon him as she replies in a low voice.]

I know I am not Adha. Regardless of what you may be thinking right now, you are dear to me and I would not deceive you.

[Altaïr nearly reels back in shock, that she would know Adha's name, and even his self-discipline can't hide some of the surprise he feels.

He stares at her for a long moment, considering how she can know about this part of his past, how he might learn more about their schemes to entrap him. But no—it would take too long to untangle truth from lies, and the part of him that still aches at having not been fast enough to save the woman he had thought might lead him to rest.

So he strides forward without a word, knocking her aside without a care.]

[And now, the dread and panic sets in. He doesn't know, he really doesn't believe or trust her-

Perhaps unwisely, she follows for a stride or two and reaches for his sleeve, tugging it to try to get him to stay.]

We have a son! Please habeebi do not go- I swear I speak the truth, I have pictures- ask Malik!

Edited 2013-11-17 15:49 (UTC)

Enough!

[Barely looking at her, Altaïr shoves hard to get her to release his arm. He refuses to pay her ravings any more mind.]

[ Knowing them both as he does, the conversation that plays out before Desmond and Alastair is almost too painful to bear. He starts after Maria, to dissuade her, and then shifts to instead catch her before her husband can push her to the floor again. It would just take a second to deck Altaïr for that right in his arrogant face-

But no, escalating things again wouldn't help. So he ignores his ancestor completely, putting a hand to her shoulder. ]

Let him go. He's going to find out for himself.

[Maria stands stock still, staring after him. She feels unsettled, there's an awful, sick feeling in the pit of her stomach and she can't quite reconcile this man, with his cold arrogance and the lack of recognition in his eyes with the man who has so often held her in his arms and made her feel loved and cherished above all else, even when she has not deserved it.

Only one woman has been dear to me, and she is not you.

She flinches when she feels Desmond's hand on her shoulder, and then turns to look at him, blinking for a moment when she sees him, before looking after Altaïr's back.]

[When he's told to stop, he does- mostly because he hears of Claudia, and being told that any kind of trial towards avenging his family is pointless here. He turns back, head tilting and staring back at Maria and Alastair, eyes questioning how she knows his sister, and he knows that it is futile.

Before he can say anything, Altaïr decides that it is useless remaining here, and the glance he throws at Ezio causes the Italian to scowl. Maria tries to make the man stay, and it backfires terribly. The constant bickering back and forth between the two only causes his scowl to deepen, and by the time Altaïr leaves, Ezio is already hightailing after him, aiming for a punch to his face.

He doesn't care if it lands, or that he's still hurting from the last times Altaïr hurt him. There are just some things you don't tell a woman, no matter what you believe. That was what his father and his mother taught him, and he'll be damned if he doesn't stand up for this woman in some way, like a gentleman.]

[The woman has let go and the buffoon he woke up with has been silent, so Altaïr doesn't expect the punch at all and goes stumbling to his knees, barely managing to keep from completely falling over.

But while the blow is a strong one and his jaw is ringing with pain, he refuses to show it. Instead, he summons his strength and rises back up to his feet, eyes burning with anger as he heads right for Ezio.]

How dare you!

[ Desmond is very suddenly and intensely a barrier between both men, jaw set and steely eyed. ]

That's enough, the both of you. This is a business and a Bureau, not your personal playgrounds. Walk. Away.

[ It's not often he has to be this serious, but there's something of his dad, of the Mentors themselves in him right now, stern and unyielding, brooking no refusal. He has a responsibility to the novizi, to Maria and Caterina and even the patrons in the shop right now to keep the peace, and clearly it can't be had if both men are together in the same place. ]

[Altaïr glares dagger at the two of them, his face nearly a mirror for Desmond's. Every muscle in his body is tense, ready to spring into action, until he lets out an irritated tch and turns away.]

As you wish.

[If he has his way, he'll find a way back to Masyaf and Al Mualim and never see these madmen again. Later losers.]

[Maria stands a moment longer, watching after them, before she takes a deep, tremulous breath and then she begins to go after her husband.

She doesn't know what she's doing, but all she knows is she has to do it fast and drub some sense back into him.

Somehow.]

[The standoff between Altaïr and Desmond has Ezio nearly hiding behind the latter, eyes wide and nostrils flaring in anger, fear and fury mixed into one moment in time.

But when Maria moves forward again to go after Altaïr, Ezio gently grabs her arm and tries to pull her back.]

Madonna- [A beat as he shakes his head.] Don't.

[Even he understands that Altaïr is beyond reasoning.]

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