Embracing The Light (Arno Dorian x OC), an Assassin's Creed Fanfiction

Chapter 28 : Music first !

Name of the music : Gioas, Re di Giuda - Aria di Atalia (Cartellieri)

Saturday, 29th of March 1795
Four days later
In the Evening

Arno and Rosalie walked inside the Burgtheater for the very first time, right after they showed their tickets to the guards at the entrance of the building. They were both wearing rather fancy clothes, nothing eye-catching. But both of them still had their hidden blades around their forearms, Rosalie even wore a cape to hide her arm and Arno had a pistol inside his coat's pocket because « you never know what can happen ».
As they were both leading towards the hall, the woman kept staring at the painted ceiling and the marble sculptures decorating the inside of the theater with astonishment while Arno was glancing at her with a little smile in the corner of his lips.
Soon enough, they walked through the doors of the performance hall and it was only a matter of time before they took their seats. As the room was starting to fill up progressively, the duo was analyzing their surroundings.
"So, where the archduke will be sitting again ?" Rosalie asked to Arno.
The man instantly pointed the balcony located at the very left, near the stage. "It is the biggest balcony inside the hall. Once he and his wife will be there, we'll have to keep an eye on them."
Rosalie nodded with agreement as she glanced at him. "You think they'll lead us to Gabrielle ?"
"I think they will lead Gabrielle to us." Arno looked back at her. "The archduke cannot move as he will, especially not when a musician is performing on stage. Every single actions of his, whether it's a chuckle or a yawn, it will be carefully observed by the crowd and influence their opinion concerning the oratorio."
"That sounds quite absurd." Rosalie remarked.
"But that is the reality." he smiled. "And that means that if they want to meet here, Gabrielle will have to visit the archduke herself. We just have to wait for her to show up."
"Right." Rosalie sighed and leaned back.
Dozens of minutes later, the room was filled completely with people, mostly noblemen and women, waiting for the oratorio to begin. It was only then that the archduke finally appeared on the balcony and took his seat, accompanied with a young woman who looked a bit chubby and had a cold expression on her face as she was looking around the hall from where she was sitting. The public observed them and a couple of people around started to share whispered words. Rosalie caught a few.
"I cannot believe how she can even find the strength to step outside." someone said, referring to the archduchess. "If I was her, I would spend my days locked in my room crying all my tears."
"Was it the first child that they have lost ?"
"I believe so, yes."
Rosalie and Arno shared a look, understanding what was going on. The woman's curiosity aroused, so she decided that it was the right time to try her developed Assassin senses by isolating the din around them and listening to the archduke and her wife's conversation.
"I have told you I should not have come." the archduchess hissed. "I can already hear people talking like snakes."
"Do not say that." the archduke tried to convince her with a sorry tone. "This is good for both of us, you know it."
"This is only good for your image." she accusingly responded. "You do not care about how I feel ! You just want us not to look weak in front of others ! But I lost a child, Franz !"
The man sighed and decided to ignore her as the oratorio was finally starting. Rosalie did the same and analyzed the stage on which a choir of men and women dressed in white was standing in the background. Meanwhile, musicians were sitting in front of them as a man, possibly the composer, was heading the orchestra, keeping his back turned at his public. Rosalie had never attended to a concert like this before, the entire atmosphere she was into felt quite strange. Since she had joined the Brotherhood, she had had numerous opportunities like this one to discover new things and explore new places and she was surely not going to complain about it.
As she kept her eyes locked on the stage, she leaned towards Arno and asked in a whisper. "What is an oratorio, actually ?"
Arno glanced at her. "It is a religious composition."
Rosalie slowly nodded. "Oui (Yes), I can feel that."
"Feel what ?"
"The religiousness... with the choir and... the musicality." she said with a concentrated face.
The man smiled. "I didn't know you were an expert in musicality."
She then looked back at him. "I... I'm not." she said in a low voice, feeling a bit embarrassed.
"I'm playing with you..." he mocked her and they both started to giggle as silently as they could.