The Eagle and the Lion

Doves

Ezio's legs dangled over the edge of the roof ledge he sat on. Sitting high above the streets, he lowered his hood and untied his hair, letting the warm breeze blow through his dark brown locks. It was nearing the edge of summer, and it was a quiet afternoon here at Leonardo's place. He looked down at the garden to see Leo tending to his flowers, taking care to water each plant the right amount.

A small cage with two sickly doves was nearby, and Ezio watched as his friend fed them a small bit of food, cooing back to them. He chuckled. Leo could be just so adorable sometimes. The artist has a soft spot for animals of all kinds, and volunteered to adopt and heal any sick or stray creatures that might find themselves wandering Firenze.

A noise alerted Ezio from this moment of peace, and he clambered up to the chimney, out of sight. Two burly soldiers strode into the garden, stepping all over the fragile plants. Leonardo gasped, and backing away, weakly asked the men to leave him in peace.

"Do you need something?" Leo asked. One guard let out a gruff laugh, and walked around, stirring up Leo's garden and rattling the dove cage. The other guard inched closer, backing Leonardo into a corner.

"Ah, little man, just waiting for our shift to start gets so boring, and we were growing restless. We heard you're quite the charmer among the fairer men," he snarled, leering in close to Leo's face, "and was wondering if you needed a little roughing up to rid yourself of this...ah, delusion of yours." He gave the architect a rough push against the wall, and Leo gasped for air. Sinking to his knees, he clawed at the guard's chest and arms, looking for an exit.

From above, Ezio's face turned red with rage. They had no right to harass Leonardo, and this business was personal. The wrong accusations as someone might make against Leonardo could land the man in a hellish life in prison, especially while Christianity was all the rage. And Ezio wouldn't stand for it. He flicked his wrists to reveal his hidden blades, and started calculating the best way to land upon the guards.

Suddenly, Leonardo scrambled out between the guard's legs, crawling on his hands and knees. The guard reached for Leo's cloak and missed, and cried out to his partner for help. The second guard lumbered towards Leo, who shakily rose to his feet and ran for the door. Ezio quickly retreated to the chimney again, sheathing his blades. Cazzo. The guards were too close to Leo and moving too fast to make a clean landing, and he wasn't about to risk stabbing Leonardo in the process.

The guard by the wall suddenly reached over and grabbed the dove cage. He began to vigorously shake it, and alarmed cries came from both the birds and Leonardo. Leo screamed at the guard to stop, then pleadingly looked up towards Ezio. The guard followed Leo's gaze to the roof and Locked eyes with the assassin. The second guard then grabbed Leonardo in a bear hug from behind and squeezed tight, leaving him immobile.

Ezio saw this chance to make a move. He flicked his blades down again, and leapt down, his hair flying behind him. As he pounced upon the guard still staring up in shock, he thrust his knives deep into the man'sskull. The guard crumpled to the ground silently. The second guard backed away, still holding his hostage as a human shield. Ezio quickly jumped up, his hair falling into his eyes. Leo's lips trembled in fright, and he meekly mumbled a prayer, out of breath. Ezio looked into Leo's eyes and gave a small reassuring nod. He turned his head to move his loose hair out of his eyes, and charged towards the two. Leo squeezed his eyes shut and tensed his body in terror.

Just before running into them, Ezio placed his hands on the guards forearms in front of Leo, and pushed up off of them to bound above them. In midair, he pulled off the guard's helmet, whipping around the two and landing behind them. He pulled out his hidden blade again, and slashed the exposed nape of the guard's neck, severing his spinal cord. The guard let out a broken scream, instantly letting go of Leonardo, and fully paralyzed, dropped the ground, blood spraying from his neck. Ezio quickly brought down one last bladed blow to the guard's throat, and he stopped twitching after that.

Ezio wiped his blades on his sleeves, and sheathed them, panting heavily. He rushed over to Leonardo, who was curled into a ball, shaking still from fright. Ezio wrapped his arms gently around his friend, and Leo slowly stilled, falling unconscious.

"Leo, Leo..." Ezio gently stroked Leonardo's face. He scooped him up in his arms, and carried him to the bedroom inside. When he made sure Leo was stable, he returned to the garden and disposed of the bodies in a haystack nearby. Ezio then crouched down to the bent bird cage, and signed in relief when he could still hear weak cooing coming from it. Leo's garden might be done for the summer, but at least the doves were still alive.

He brought the cage inside and set it next to where Leo now rested. Leonardo murmured and shifted slightly, but stayed asleep. Ezio stayed at his side for hours, only moving once to make sure the doves had been calmed and fed. He held Leo's hand, and thought aloud, wondering if Leo might just hear him.

"I wonder," Ezio mused softly, " You and I are not unlike these doves. " He looked over at the two birds, who now snuggled against each other asleep. He looked down at his own hands, his fingers entwined with Leo's. "We are meant to have love and peace in our hearts, but even when we are threatened, we only work to defend that peace." He paused, and let out a long sigh.

"If only you'll be safe next to me, in the end, my Leo." He leaned over and softly kissed Leonardo between the eyes, then snuggled up next to him in the bed. All thoughts of worry disappeared quickly. Ezio had his love safe again.