Broken Soldier ~ Assassin's Creed 4

Chapter Twenty Four

Martin held my hand as he led me around the entire school grounds. I held onto my hood, keeping it from blowing down in the wind to stop the snow from getting in my hair. A few of the younger girls were throwing snowballs around to knock over small, upturned plant pots. Martin threw his own snowball, hitting a pot and it dropped from the fence and buried itself in the snow. He cheered quietly when the girls turned to look at him. They clapped as he helped to set the pots back up again. He then swept some snow from a bench for us to sit down.

"We can watch them playing for a bit, if you like." I nodded, taking a seat. "Did you ever do any of this when you were younger?" He motioned to the game.

"My sisters are quite a bit younger than me, so I never really took to playing with them. I used to play with Holden, who I am sure you have met." He nodded. "I also loved writing stories about princesses, inspired by fairy tales my father used to read me. I don't really remember him reading them, but my mother kept the book and read them herself. So, I have books at home filled with short stories."

"I would love to read them sometime, if that would be okay with you." I smiled.

"You will have to ask my mother to read them, she keeps them in the library in a hidden chest. I am not sure whether she will give them up so easily, but it is worth a try."

"I admire you creativity, even when you were so young. I was never like that. My brothers and I were simply always in sword fighting lessons. Our father would give us wooden swords to practice with." I watched as a smile spread right across his lips. "I loved the days when we would get along like a house on fire. The five of us would stand outside for hours, in whatever weather, hitting each other with these wooden swords. No one ever got hurt. Well, except for when Lucas broke a finger." Martin chuckled. "He pretended to die in a very dramatic way and ended up landing with his hand on a rock. He then dropped his sword onto his finger and it smashed the bone in the tip of his middle finger. Lucas wasn't always the brightest of children."

"We were never able to do anything which might get us hurt. So, Holden used to listen to me playing the violin and would dance like an idiot to whatever tune I played. My sisters just wanted to play with dolls all day. I wasn't too fond of that, but I do have a lot of dolls. The last time I played with dolls, they weren't even mine." I giggled, but then froze at the thought. "I was at a family friend's home. She had a room with dolls and a small table in. Even a tea set was set out. I started playing for a while until the woman's son, Edward, came in to see what all the noise was." I sighed and reached into my coin purse, pulling out the little soldier. "He gave me this. We had been good friends since we were ten years old, and we are still incredibly close. But...I have no idea when I will see him again. He was a privateer, and now a pirate."

"You do not mind that he is a pirate?"

"Not at all. He is only doing it to earn money for his family. His wife, his parents. He simply wants a home which he and his wife can feel safe in, instead of a tool shed on his parents' farm." Martin nodded.

"He has a good reason. I can relate to that, so I will not judge him. In fact, it is a rather noble thing to do; risking his life to help his family. If I was in the same position, I am not sure I would be able to turn to a life of piracy. The dangers... I cannot bare to think..."

"You...um...you mentioned your brothers. Do you see them often?"

"Oh, only every other month. I live in England for six months out of the year and I live in France for the other six. I have a small home in France, though, because I prefer England. Also, most of my business is here so it is far easier to stay here." I felt his hand drop on top of mine as it rested on the table. "I would like for you to visit them with me, once you have finished your education."