Chapter Eight

I sit on top of the Villa Auditori, scanning the rooftops that spread out below me. Nothing moves, well nothing special. I sigh, but keep looking.

She not there, you're waiting for nothing.

My lip twitches in annoyance at the thought. I'm not looking for her. I answer the voice. I know I shouldn't, but I can't help it. Since Lucia had left, I had no distraction to keep them at bay. Those voices, even if they had all started as just mine, were warped. I could hear Ezio, Altair, some I could guess at, others I didn't recognise at all.

She's not coming back. They got her.

"Shut up." I answer aloud, reassurance coming from hearing my own voice. "She'll be back tomorrow." The beeper on my watch goes off, giving me the signal to head back to the Sanctuary. I make my way back, a low throb of excitement that Lucia would be back the next day.

I'm so excited I even dream about her, and it's just a dream. Not a strange memory, just a dream. I wake up with a smile and I'm even enthusiastic when I get into the animus. When I get out, it's well after midnight.

I had plenty of time, I wouldn't even wake her, I just want to see her. I don't even notice the distance, as I make my way to the villa. I lift myself up to the ledge and peer into the window, to her room. My stomach drops.

Told you. She's not coming back.

I frown and shake my head at the empty room, They were probably just held up, stayed another night. I nod at my excuse.

They got her, just accept it. You're alone again.

I drop to the ground and pain jars up my legs, from the ground shock. But it also clears my head.

I walk back to the Sanctuary, my mood steadily getting lower. The voices in my head return and I try, and fail, to block out the discussion that is taking place about Lucia's fate.

Rebecca picks up on the change as I walk in. I restrict my answers to one syllable, 'yes,' 'no,' or even simply, a grunt or nod.

"So, have you seen the girl again?" Her attempt to lift my mood, goes horribly wrong and I stare at her. "The one... from..." She trails off, at my glare. Watching after me, as I mumble an excuse about being tired, and stalk over to my sleeping bag.

It's not her fault Lucia wasn't there. I tell myself off. There's no need to take it out on her. I roll my eyes, huffing out a breath and dropping onto the sorry excuse for a bed.

Why am I sleeping down here, when I have a perfectly good bed in my room?

I squeeze my eyes shut, and press clenched fists into them, at the random thought, that I hadn't been thinking. But I- HE, honestly sounded confused. I hold in a groan and roll over, keeping my eyes closed, until the only thing, aside from Lucia, that relieved my head, tugged my still noisy mind to sleep.

"You feeling any better, Des?" I yawn and fake a smile.

"Yeah, I think I just needed some sleep." I over exaggerate a full body stretch.

"Excellent, the last thing we need is more tension." She chuckles, "Shaun has that under lock and key." She taps away at the keyboard in front of her, "Your session went well today. You get in the zone when you're hooked up to Baby." I nod.

"On that note I might go for a walk before I get back into it. Don't wanna lose touch with the 'real world'." I wink at her and she smiles.

"God forbid, we lose touch of the "real world"." She lifts her hands and puts quotation marks around the words and I laugh, flicking a hand over my shoulder in farewell, as I walk out.

I don't go to the villa, my head, wasn't too bad yet and the thought of seeing the empty room again was disappointment enough. I watch the sky as I vault the rooftops. Clouds make slow progress, across it and I find myself on top of the church roof gazing up in envy at the freedom the sky provided them.

My sight changes and my shoulders drop. Still can't control it. I close my eyes and pinch the bridge of my nose, shaking my head and squashing the thought, something I was getting real good at. I catch a shimmer from the corner of my eye and look.

There she is.

She stands on the edge of the roof across from me, glowing blue. Her hood, casting a shadow over her face. Cape, fluttering slightly in the invisible breeze. She tilt's her head slightly and even though I can't see her eyes, I can feel them, looking at me. She smiles and raises a hand.

I watch her, take a few steps back and take a flying leap towards me. For a moment she hangs in midair, and I feel a surge of panic, thinking she won't make it across the distance. She lands, one foot on the edge, the other slipping down the side of the building. I reach out and grab her hand as she scrabbles at the roof tiles.

"Mhairi, are you alright?" I ask, as I pull her upright. She frowns and the blue shimmer fades, leaving a confused Lucia looking back at me.

"What?"

"What?" I feel stupid asking the same question back, but I couldn't exactly say, 'Oh, nothing, I just got you confused with an assassin who lived 500 years ago, that's all.'

"You were talking in Italian." I stare blankly.

"Uh, yeah. Been trying to learn, you know, since we're in Italy and all that." She looks back unconvinced.

"Oh, I thought I heard you call me... Never mind." She shakes her head, then looks back up, smiling. "But anyway, hey." She pauses, and then throws her arms around me. It catches me by surprise, but it takes me less than a second to respond, slipping my arms under hers.

"Yeah, hey. I was expecting you back yesterday." I can't keep the slightly accusing tone from my voice. I loosen my grip and smile, when she doesn't do the same, arms still firmly attached around my neck, although she does pull back to look up at me.

"Yeah I know, sorry, I had a moment and Aunty and Uncle, decided to stay an extra day to make sure I'd recovered."

"A moment?" I ask, curious and concerned, at the same time.

"Yeah, I uh," She looks away sheepishly, "fainted or something. I dunno, One minute, I'm walking to the kitchen and next minute, Auntys waking me up, on the floor." She shrugs and then looks back to me, eyes wide, "And I dreamt about the assassins again, like, while I was passed out."

"Wait, you fainted to dream about them?" I watch her with narrow eyes, a dull throb in my stomach, signalling an increase in my concern.

"No, I mean, wheel it does sound like that, aye." She laughs, "But, it wasn't like I did it on purpose, it just happened."

"But you're alright now?" I scrutinise her face, and she looks away, blushing.

"Yeah, I mean, it was them freaking out, not me." I reach up and pull her face back towards mine.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, really, I'm fine." She says, pulling away. "Let's go find somewhere to sit and I'll tell you all about it." She beckons and backs towards the edge of the roof. She shoots me a smirk and drops down, making my heart thud, before I grin and follow her down into the church.

I sit and listen to her recount the night and when she leans on me and my natural reaction is to put my arm around her shoulders. She tells me about the memory, being woken, her Aunt and Uncle's discussion. Waking up, crying.

"And I don't know why." She twirls a strand of her hair, as she thinks. "Like at the time, I could remember it a bit, but now I can't remember any of it. And I'm like 'Don't be so stupid, it was only a dream'. And then I was all, 'Think positive, oh, you'll be seeing Desmond soon, and you can tell him all about it'." She laughs and then freezes, like she had let something slip, again.

"Is that right?" I tease her, trying not to laugh. She looks away awkwardly.

"Wheel, yeah. I know it's stupid, but I always look forward to seeing you." She smiles, shyly, "I was, so, devastated when they said we were staying away another day."

She says something so simple and your stomach feels like it's going to explode from the butterflies. I can feel the smile etched on my face, and I can feel the thought shake its head at me. But it is my thought. All me, and it was great, even though I was wondering how Ezio was going to feel, when he finds out Mhairi's now taken.

"That's kind of why I came out tonight. I wanted to see if you were around." She turns her shy smile on me and mine get's bigger. "Is that alright?" She asks, hesitant smile fading. Hell yeah, it's alright. Luckily the thought stays in my head and doesn't slip from my mouth.

"Why wouldn't it be?" I shrug to hide the fact that I was suddenly very conscience of how close we were. Just turn your head at the right time, and you could 'accidently' kiss her, without even trying. Now that, was definitely something I missed. I think of Ezio's recent advances towards the, now married Christina, and feel a spark of jealousy. Even dead, he gets more action then me.

Lucia mistakes my thoughtful look for, annoyance and starts to pull away.

"Sorry, if I'm annoying you, you can just tell me and I'll go-" I stop her before I even realise I'm doing it, tensing my arm slightly, to keep her from moving further away.

"No, really, you're not annoying me." She bites her lip, then smiles, relaxing back into my side.

"Okay, cause if you don't want to listen to me, you can just say. I won't get offended or anything." I chuckle.

"Actually, I like your stories." Her eyes shine.

"Really?"

"Really." I murmur, nodding and trying not to look at her lips. Her eyes flick down, then back up and I watch her move closer. Don't forget, she's only seventeen. The warning resounds in my head. But another whispers behind it. She's nearly eighteen. Nearly... That does it and I can't help myself, I move forward to meet her.

But something happens.

Lucia's eyes widen and she goes stiff, back arching. There is a flash from my left and I blink at the unexpected light. My eyes slowly readjust and Lucia slumps into my chest. I cradle her, calling out her name, and get no response. She lies in my arms, limp. I slide off the pew and lay her on the ground, checking to make sure she's breathing.

"Lucia?" I shake her and get no response."Lucia!" I say her name louder and shake her harder. Before I can get up, I freeze, my whole body tense. I suck in a strained breath, falling to the ground, as another flash of light is followed by the now familiar 'Black Loading' screen, materializing around me.