Pericoloso (Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood Fanfiction)

Chapter 2: Alleato

Present

The mysterious figure kneels down beside the fallen assassin, checking his pulse. He's alive, and the person looks around before scooping him up and carrying him away from the alley. He needs help, and quick.

Thankfully, this stranger knows how to stitch a wound. He should count himself lucky.

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Ezio wakes with a jolt, his head pounding. He scoots up into sitting position, immediately noticing his bandaged torso, still stained from the blood.

He's lying on a pile of hay in a stone turret, on top of some building. A thin canvas roof covers the small space, and he shivers as cold night wind blows through.

"Where am I?" he asks out loud.

He looks around, and to his horror, his hood, cloak, armour; everything except his pants and boots, is gone, leaving him feeling rather bare.

He hears footsteps again. A hooded figure leaps into the turret easily. She stops short when she sees that Ezio has awakened, but that's not what catches his attention. His eyes skim over her body, accented with curves that reveal her gender to him instantly.

"Good. You're awake," a feminine voice says. "I washed most of the blood out of your clothing."

She hands him the bundle, eyeing his covered wound.

"What happened?" Ezio asks softly. "Did you...?"

"I don't know how you were injured. All I did was carry you up here and bandage you up," the woman says. "Any longer and you would've bled out. You should be thankful."

He watches her as she starts rummaging through a cloth sack. She carried him up here? Impressive; he wouldn't expect her to have that kind of strength in her.

He smiles at her, and she looks to him, raising an eyebrow.

"Am I not allowed to see the face of my hero?" he asks.

"Forgive me if I don't trust you quite yet," she says quietly. "Although you are one of the order."

He pulls his newly-cleaned cloak over his shoulders, using it as a blanket. The woman grabs another roll of bandages from her bag, moving to him.

"May I?"

He nods, and she unwraps the bandages around his abdomen, her delicate fingers careful against his skin.

He keeps a steady gaze on her as she works, studying the small amount of her face he can see; her lips, her chin, her nose. He tries to peer under her hood and see her eyes, but she does a good job at keeping her head down.

In one swift movement, he grasps her left hand, pulling it towards himself. She looks startled, but doesn't yank it away. He pushes her sleeve up, immediately noticing the assassin stamp on her ring finger.

"Ah, so you are one of the order as well?" He chuckles, and she retracts her hand.

She sighs, pulling off her hood and revealing golden eyes framed by shoulder-length brown hair. Her face has a tough look to it, but an aura of kindness surrounds it, and her eyes shine with a deep sense of intelligence.

"Speranza Chilometri."

"Ezio Auditore da Firenze."

"You're an Auditore...I thought there was something familiar about you," Speranza murmurs, tossing the last of the old bandage aside. He winces as her fingertips brush the edges of the wound, and she sighs. "It'll heal, eventually," she says casually as she begins re-wrapping.

"How can I repay you, mia signora?" he asks.

"You don't. You owe me nothing, beyefendi." She shakes her head, continuing to encircle his waist with the bandage. "It's my own fault that I can't just let strangers be."

"I don't see this as a fault. I get to see another day because of you."

She says nothing, just finishes bandaging him.

"Get some rest," she murmurs.

"Grazie."

His eyes droop shut, and he dreams of the beautiful girl that saved his life.

Mia signora: My lady

Beyefendi: Sir

Grazie: Thank you,