The Eagle and the Lion

Always My Priority

Ezio thought he could not take another step. Sweat poured down his neck; each breath was like a dagger to his lungs. He had been pursued by the guards for hours, and now no haystack nor barrel in Florence was safe for refuge. Always, always running, leaping, swinging from beam to beam. At least two guards occupied every rooftop now, and it seemed they increased in number by the minute. He figured then, it probably wasn't the best idea to steal codex pages so soon after murdering the traitor Uberti.

As he jumped for a beam from a rooftop, his sweaty palms slid right off the wood. His head smacked against the adjacent wall, and he dropped five stories like a dead bird. He landed roughly in a pile of bushes in the secluded garden below. All was black before he hit the ground. The codex page fell from his pocket, and fluttered on the ground nearby. The guards soon grew tired of the chase, and headed back to their stations.

Ezio awoke to blurry vision and a ringing in his ears. It was dark out, and the noise of the townsfolk had died down. He struggled to his feet, and gasped as white spots appeared before his eyes. He swayed a bit, found his balance, and looked around. He recognized this as the garden behind the architect Leonardo DaVinci's place. Walking around the front of the building, Ezio noticed the door was unlocked, and slightly ajar. He stepped into the house.

"Leonardo?" Ezio turned about, looking for a sign to where he could be. Just then, a sight in an adjacent room caught his eye. He gasped, and all pain aside, ran over to an unconscious Leo on the floor, covered in a dark red liquid around broken remains of a strange contraption...

"No, no, no, Leo. Leo!" The assassin fervently shook Leonardo, whose eyes fluttered open then.

"Ezio?" The architect got up promptly and dusted himself off, seemingly unfazed. "What in the-"

"Leo, are you alright? What happened here? Did the guards assault you again? Where are you bleeding from?" Ezio frantically examined his friend, searching for wounds. Leonardo chuckled in response.

"Oh, dear Ezio, I am alright, but before I explain, I need to ask the same to you!" Leo reached out and gingerly brushed against a deep gash on the side of Ezio's head. The boy hissed in sudden pain, and recoiled from Leo's touch.

"I- it's a long story, my friend," he stammered. "Just trying to escape the guards." Ezio leaned against the wall, suddenly out of breath.

"Well then, here, lay on the bed and I'll fetch the medicine kit." Leonardo led the boy into the bedroom and eased him on the bed. He headed into the other room, and from the kitchen he called,

"As for me, I guess I missed my step. This isn't blood, don't worry, I was just painting a project of mine." Leo returned with a glass of water, linens and ointment. He sat on the edge of the bed and gently washed Ezio's wounds.

"So, what trouble did you get yourself into now, hmm?" Leonardo chuckled. "It seems a skill of yours, I'd reckon." He gently dabbed away the drying blood from Ezio's hair.

"I was trying to-" Ezio gasped as the architect applied the salve. "-Trying to get you a codex - ah, fuck, Leo!" Leonardo hesitated for a moment, then continued applying bandages. "-A codex page, I think I left the one I grabbed, but it's in the garden, I think."

Leonardo glanced out the window, and indeed, an iridescent piece of parchment was blowing about with the leaves in the garden. He signaled Ezio to rest, and went out to grab it. He returned with the page as well as a mug of honey lemon tea, which he placed in Ezio's hands. Sitting down on the bed again, he peered at the codex page.

"I have to thank you," Ezio said between sips, "for taking care of me now."

"Anytime, honey," Leonardo murmured, than looked up in slight alarm. "Er, I, is the um, honey...honey tea warm now?"

Ezio blinked, a bit confused, then slowly nodded. Leo, blushing deeply, coughed and stood up hastily.

"Well then, you, ah, rest up here, and I, I'm going to, uh," he gestured vaguely at the codex page and strode into the craft room.

"What of your, uh, project, Leonardo?" Ezio inquired. His mug was empty. Leo simply waved the idea off. 

"My personal projects can wait. You, Ezio," he pointed to with his quill, "You will always be my priority." Ezio looked down, his face red. "Um, thanks," he responded shyly. "May I help myself to some more tea?"