Magnetism: A Proto-creed fic: Ch4 - Communication

Chapter 4 - Communication

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Altair shifted a little in his seat as he worked through the project with Alex, the other didn't have much to say during the whole study session, but Altair didn't mind it all that much he was used to the quiet, being back in the Auditore home full of hustle and bustle was going to take some getting used  to all over again, he hummed a little absently not aware he was even doing it as he  wrote down some notes from one of the libraries study books they were working from and sketched out  the eagle of the drawing in the book.

Alex  turned to tell Altair to quiet with the humming it was sort of irritating but he paused when he noticed how content the other looked, which still unnerved the hell out of him Altair was this human shaped enigma that continued to confuse him, he noticed the other was drawing and raised an eyebrow; well that explained why he was in the art class Altiar was pretty talented at it, he had a half mind to ask if he'd told Ezio and his family about the modelling job, he knew the girls in the art class probably wouldn't, for fear of him threatening them and Leonardo wouldn't say anything because he wasn't that sort of guy.

"...your pretty good at that" Alex said suddenly, breaking the silence of the room, noting that the Arabian male used his left hand to draw; the one with the finger missing, he wondered how he'd lost it, sure he'd heard Syria was a rough country so there could be countless reasons why.

Altair stopped humming and blinked,  he just stared at the other under his hood for a moment "Oh, uh thanks" He said surprised Alex had started a conversation for once "I'm not as good as Leonardo but I try" He said softly as he finished off the sketch with a pencil, before switching to a pen to continue writing notes, he'd finished off the sketch in ink later but he knew work was priority, sometimes doodling helped him clear his head.

There was silence for a few more minutes before Altair spoke "Well this is weird...never thought you'd actually talk to me unless you had to" Altair admitted with a raised eyebrow as he glanced at the other as Alex shifted uncomfortably in his seat

"...Yeah well..." Alex broke off not sure what to say, he hadn't even meant to let the words slip out of his mouth in the first place, but something compelled him to try and...be nice for some reason, he coughed a little and looked back on what they were working on as if trying to cut off the conversation.

"Yeah well what?" Altair asked; oh no Alex wasn't getting out of a conversation HE had started so easily "Look if you want to talk we can talk, it doesn't bother me, I'm sure even sociopaths need a friendly ear to talk to" He said with a little smirk.

Alex just glared at him which made Altair smirk even more "Just saying" He said with a shrug as Alex rolled his eyes and glanced back at his text books as he jotted down some notes about DNA patterns as he tried to ignore the other but it was harder to do than he thought. The other intrigued him and he was curious about Altair, other than what the other had told him the other was a mystery.

"...I'm not sure what to talk about" Alex mumbled a few minutes later, it was quite a delayed seen as the silence had stretched out between them before he spoke "I'm not all that Interesting" He said dully, and he really thought it was true what hobbies did he had other than reading up about science? He didn't go out, he didn't socialize, he certifiably didn't TRUST anyone He wasn't interesting or fascinating at all.

"Oh? You really think so huh?" Altair said with a raised eyebrow "Come on your one of the most intimidating people in the college and you claim you're not interesting? I think you're talking out your ass personally" Altair said a she leaned back in his seat and stretched a bit his hood falling further over his face. "I mean there has to be a reason for why you are the way you are" Altair pointed out.

"..." Alex said nothing at that how and raised an eyebrow at that; okay so maybe Altair had a point but he didn't see how he could open himself up to Altair who was still a stranger and just as much of a mystery as he was "I could say the same about you, you know" He admitted; of course saying that meant he was in an offhand way admitting he was curious about the other, and Alex was NEVER interested in ANYONE other than himself.

Altair said nothing for a moment before he chuckled softly tapping his pencil absently on his notebook "Well, that's true enough I'm not as easy to read as my cousins" He said "Well then, I guess that's something we have him common" he said with a shrug "I suppose that's a start anyway"

"...A start to what?" Alex asked with a raised eyebrow he didn't want to admit it but Altiar had a point, they DID have that whole 'mysterious enigma aura' surrounding them both, it seemed that neither of them trusted easily as Altair hadn't made any friends other then his childhood friends and his cousins, despite girls and guys both wanting to get to know him.

"A start to becoming friends...what? You need one, and I guess I need one too and if we're going to work together for the whole semester we might as well get to know each other a little better" Altair said "To be honest I'm just as bad at making friends as you are...I tend to just make rivals and enemies"

"..." Alex raised an eyebrow at that "...Your weird" Was all Alex could day to that; he'd never met anyone who was similar to him in any way before, he'd always been called 'odd' or a 'freak' but other students and children, only his sister Dana had seen past his violent and unpredictable behaviour and seen what he was really like behind his mask.

"That makes two of us then, I get called weird by my cousins all the time...but it's mainly because of cultural differences, I'm pretty used to it by now" He said with a shrug "as he opened a reference textbook, trying to work while they talked; they were having a half decent conversation, it was more than Altiar ever expected from the other.

After a few minutes of silence the two worked together through their DNA project, before Alex spoke again "...Why didn't you tell Ezio about the fact I was modelling?" Alex asked softly; that had been something that was bothering him since he noticed Altair was in that class.

"Why would I? It's not that much of a big deal if your modelling in my class" He said with a shrug "Besides If I told Ezio half the school would know by now, I swear he can't keep a secret to save his life" Altair said with an amused shake of his head. "I figured you wouldn't want all the hassle so I kept my mouth shut"

"How very astute of you" Alex said as his mouth twitched into a faint smile before realized what he was doing and it disappeared as he looked back at his text book "What was he doing!? He never smiled for anyone but Dana! He frowned and  shifted in his seat this conversation ans stepping into unfamiliar territory and while it was certainly odd he had seemingly found some sort of mutual understanding with Altair, that didn't mean he trusted him any more than when they'd first met.

"Well I try, not all of  Auditore family are a bunch of blockheads" He said with a  slight smirk though it was more to himself than to Alex seen as he was flipping through the index at the back of one of the books they were using to study with. "So how about we ask each other questions to answer? It'll pass the time and  I promise I won't ask anything too personal" Altair said simply as he glanced at Altair "What do you say we have a deal?"

"..." Alex raised an eyebrow at that as he pondered this; he wasn't sure about this whole having a friend thing, but after all this time he'd found someone who was like him, even if the similarities were few and far between in Alex's opinion. But surely it couldn't hurt to TRY and get and get to know the other, Dana would want him to have a friend; before the accident she'd always bugged him to have at least one friend.

"Alright... You start" Alex said as he agreed with the question and answer session; it was obvious he was treating this whole thing with caution but Altair didn't mind, this was one step to getting to know the other that was good enough for him.

"With pleasure..."

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"Okay how does it feel now?" Shaun asked the brunette as he checked the younger male's ankle, the ice had kept down any swelling so Shaun reached into the first aid kit and pulled out some bandages, which he wrapped Desmond's ankle in to support the injured limb.

"Better I guess, but this means no more Parkour for me for a few days huh?" The brunette said with a slight pout as he wriggled his toes about slowly as if checking they were still working; he loved Parkour and while he wasn't as good at it as Federico or Ezio he always tried his hardest, he just didn't have a natural talent for these things that his older brothers did.

"More like a week, if I had to err on the side of caution, just take it easy" Shaun corrected with a soft sigh "Honestly Desmond your such an airhead to get yourself hurt this often" the Brit said as he tied the bandage up neatly at the top so it wouldn't come loose.

Desmond said nothing as he watched at Shaun's hand's as they worked; Shaun's hands weren't like his or Ezio's, or even Altair's Desmond's hands were rough and calloused from all the climbing and training he did, cuts and scrapes on his hands were normal when you were climbing the rough terrain of buildings so much; but Shaun's hands were different they were soft and gentle, his hands were slim and long, graceful and accurate, probably from all the times Shaun had played the piano in his spare time.

"...What?" Shaun asked and Desmond blinked then blushed when he found himself staring at the others hands the brunette just shook his head softly and sunk down more into his hoodie when he felt the others sharp hazel eyes looking at him, observing him.

"Nothing, sorry I  was just thinking" He'd said with a shake of his head "And no jokes about how I don't think!" Desmond said before Shaun could open his mouth. The British male just smirked and raised his hand in the air in his own defence at such accusations.

"I wasn't about to say anything" He said it was a lie and they both knew it; there was no way Shaun wouldn't  take the opportunity to say something witty or sarcastic to someone, that was another thing Desmond admired about Shaun, it didn't matter who it was he would always say what he thought, he was always honest even if it meant he got told off or beat up.

The brunette just rolled his eyes as he swing his legs over the side of the  examination bed and slid off it he had a limp but he could walk fine enough the bandage doing its job of supporting his ankle "Come on lets go back, they've probably finished with parkour now..." He said before he paused; he'd never asked Shaun to come to his house before, like a friend or anything he;d really wanted to but he;d always chickened out "Hey uh...do you want to some and have dinner at my house with my family?" He said blurting it all out at once, before he mentally berated himself for being an idiot; why would Shaun want to come to dinner? He bet the other would probably say no, that he was busy or something...

"...Alright sure" Shaun said with a shrug "I can't complain at the thought of free food" He said with a smile; he chuckled a little when he noticed the younger males jaw drop a little his honey brown eyes widening in surprise at his agreement; obviously, that was not the reaction Desmond had actually been expecting from him.

Shaun wouldn't openly admit it but the other was sort of...cute, in his own way what with his big puppy dog eyes and clumsiness' it only made the other  even more adorable, and like hell he'd ever admit he had a weakness for cute things, including cute people.

Of course Shaun wasn't an idiot; he knew Desmond had an attraction to him or at least liked him in some way enough to want to be close to him, that was so obvious and Desmond was so transparent even an idiot could figure it out, what Shaun didn't understand was why the other had picked him, he wasn't like the other at all they weren't interested in much of the same things...and yet Desmond was in the same history class as him, he sat next to him shared his lunch with him and invited him to dinner at his house.

They were so different...and yet the fact Desmond liked him didn't bother him all that much, in fact he was sort of...flattered to be honest, the British male didn't think anyone would ever like him in the romantic sense after he spent so long being a sarcastic git and pushing everyone away, but Desmond was just one of those people who just didn't seem to be swayed easily.

"Really!? I mean, that's great!" the brunette said his face brightening up with a happy grin that the other was coming for dinner his mother always said he should bring his friends around more often "Lets go Ezio will be waiting for us" He said as he limped towards the door before he blinked when he felt an arm slide around his waist and Desmond's arm being placed around Shaun's shoulders.

"We can't have you falling over like an idiot while you're hurt can we?" Shaun said in the way of an explanation. Desmond smiled; see this was why the other likes the British male, despite all his sarcasm and bluntness, in his own small way he always showed that he cared.

"Yeah, your right" Desmond agreed and they both chuckled as they headed back outside.

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Ezio was indeed calling it a day as Leonardo jotted down  the last of everyone's times in the obstacle course and Ezio waved goodbye to his members and reminded them to all warm down before they got changed.

"I guess that's it huh?" Leonardo said with a smile as he held the little clipboard under his arm with a smile as he approached his friend "I can't believe you guys can jump so far and not hurt yourselves, you really have talent" Leonardo said with a chuckle.

"Well I've hurt myself a few times but you only get better with practise like all things" He said softly his eyes wandering Leonardo's face, his shoulder length blonde hair tucked behind his ears, his sky blue eyes the freckles that dusted across his nose, his soft full mouth down to the curve of his throat.

"...Ezio? Are you alright?" Leonardo asked and Ezio blinked and realized he'd been staring at the other intently without meaning to.

"I'm fine, sorry" Ezio said as he fought an urge to actually blush, and ignored the fact he'd been staring a this childhood friend for far too long that was considered friendly or normal. "Let's go join up with Desmond shall we? He and Shaun have been gone for quite a while" He said as he shoved his hand into his pockets with a faint smile.

Leonardo thankfully didn't bring it up or question it, in truth he never considered Ezio anything more than straight, not since he flirted with girls from age 10 onwards, he was an early learner that was for sure, and while the blonde had always harboured affection for Ezio he had never hoped for anything more than the others friendship.

Leonardo remembered how hard it had been for him to come out of the closet, his father was a strict Christian and was the type who abhorred the thought of homosexuals, so when he came out aged only 14 his father flipped his shit, Leonardo had turned up on Ezio's doorstep a couple of hours later crying and covered in bruises and a busted lip, a small bag of cloths the only thing he'd managed to take with him before his father had kicked him out of the house.

He had feared Ezio would be the same way but he wasn't the whole family was open and accepting Federico it turned out had already come out the closet for being bisexual to his parents and no one cared, he was still their son, if he was happy, then they were happy.

So he was relived when he was accepted by the Auditore's they were like his second family, he couldn't have stood it if he had been rejected by Ezio and his family as well,  but he was relived when he hadn't been and he had ended up staying with them for several years before he got a place in the dorms when he went to university.

They met up with Desmond and Shaun by the entrance to the campus just as they were leaving and Desmond greeted his elder brother with a little wave "Ah! There you both are, so what's the damage?" He asked with a chuckle as they all walked away form the university campus and back towards the Auditore villa.

"He'll need to take it easy on his leg for a few days, or a week depending but he's all patched up and ready to head home, invited me for dinner as well" He said with a grin as Desmond blushed brightly and started stammering some sort of excuse as to why he's asked but no one was really listening as they headed home, because of Desmond ankle Ezio called them all a taxi and they all rode home together.

Once they got home Desmond smiled and  blushed when his mother greeted them "Mom this is Shaun he's my friend, Shaun this is my mother Maria" He said as he introduced Shaun who was very polite and greeted her with a smile Maria took to Shaun instantly as they talked about philosophy and books and even some history, the brunette looked between them and almost pouted at being all left out; of course he was glad his mother liked Shaun (Someone who may or may not become his boyfriend in the future) but still he was thrown out of the loop.

Thankfully his mother seemed to notice his pouting and smiled "How about you sit in the living room and wait, dinner will be ready soon" Maria promised with a smile as she excused herself and headed back into the kitchen.

Shaun nodded and let Desmond lead him into the large living room that Ezio and Leonardo were already occupying, the two were sitting in front of the TV and playing video games, just like they used to before Salai came into Leonardo's  life Desmond sat next to the blonde and watched Leonardo get beaten in the game by Ezio but neither of them seemed to mind who won and who lost, it was just fun between friends.

Shaun didn't seem to mind just watching the two play as they waited for dinner to arrive and Desmond yawned a bit as he began to feel sleepy, surely a quick nap before dinner wouldn't do him any harm?

Closing his eyes he let all the faint sounds from the TV and his brother conversing with Leo fade away as he fell asleep he leaned sideways a bit and found something warm and comfy to sleep on it smelled nice too so he nuzzled into it.

Of course Desmond didn't realise said warm, comfy thing was Shaun's arm. The British male raised an eyebrow at the others snuggling but he didn't try to remove the other because the brunette  was incredibly cute when he was asleep.

Shaun sighed a little and shifted the other so he was now asleep in his lap which is probably a much more comfortable position, and he let his fingers rake through Desmond's hair which the brunette seemed to hum appreciatively at as he slept on.

Shaun watched Desmond and wondered why he was being so soft on the other, He supposed in the end he just couldn't help it; Desmond was cute and he liked him even if he had been very off hand with him to start with, he hadn't wanted any more friends, but the young male had wormed his way into his life somehow, and honestly he didn't mind as much as he thought he would, maybe if Desmond ever confessed to him he'd allow the other to date him.

He'd just have to wait and see.

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" I think we should leave it for today" Altair said as he closed his books and checked the time; it was almost 6:30pm, no doubt Ezio and the others had headed home and were hanging out until dinner was ready he;d have to hurry back if he was going to avoid missing dinner entirely "We can continue tomorrow if that's alright with you" he said as he began packing his things away; during the whole of the study session that had talked a little Alex had actually been forthcoming and had revealed a litter but about himself, his favourite colour was red and that he had a sister who was four years younger than him, but that's about as far as he got to Alex;s personal life and if Altiar was being honest he didn't really pry too deeply, he had to take this one step at a time, he needed to get Alex to trust him..

"Tomorrow is fine, same time and place?" The older male asked softly as he copied Altair and packed his things away, they had made a lot of progress on the project he was actually a little impressed with Altair; s sheer intellect about it; with anyone else he'd get annoyed or frustrated with them, at least Altair was more competent than most.

"Sure thing" He said; he was tempted to ask Alex to dinner but he decided against it right now, Besides he had a certain James Heller to hunt down tonight and he wasn't sure how his aunt Maria would react to having Alex Mercer in her house just yet.

Once the two packed up and  left the campus they went their separate ways after a little awkward moment when they said goodbye, once he was alone he made his way up on the rooftops and  used the roof to take the shortest route back to the Auditore mansion.

"I'm home!" Altair called as he practically burst through the front door slipping off his trainers and dumbing his bag by the door "I'm not too late am I?" He said before he blinked when he noticed Shaun sat at the table with Desmond and talking; The brunette looked a tad embarrassed for some reason (No surprises seen as he'd woken up lying in his crush;s lap and Ezio was poking fun at him for it) looks like Desmond plucked up the courage to ask Shaun to come to dinner and it seemed his aunt had warmed up to him at least.

"Ah Altair, I wasn't sure when you'd be back so I left your dinner in the oven to keep warm" Maria said, Altiar just nodded at that and went to get it before sitting at the spare spot on the table with everyone else; like usually Altair was mostly quiet and observed everyone else.

He saw how happy Ezio was and how much Leonardo laughed as they talked together off in their own little corner of the table; they were so wound up with each other even if someone tried to interrupt them they'd go ignored, right now they were just completely focused on each other. Altair faintly wondered how long it'd be until they actually admitted they felt more than friendship for each other; he was pretty sure that Leonardo, having been out of the closet for a while, had already crushed on Ezio before and presumed his best friend was straight, and had never told Ezio how he felt.

When it came to his cousin though it was difficult to say; Ezio was someone who was easily to like and even easier to develop feelings for, he has been just one of those guys that was naturally likeable to most people (Alex mercer is the rare exception) but the way he flirted with girls you'd think he was 100% straight and had no interest in males whatsoever, but the way he was with Leonardo made him think differently, Ezio was never as happy as he was with the blonde.

And then there was Shaun and Desmond; poor Desmond was as see-through as a window about his feelings he was the type to wear his heart on his sleeve; he really couldn't help being so expressive, the poor kid had a horrid poker face and couldn't lie to save his life, being one of the babies of the family he constantly looked up to his big brothers and even Altiar to a large extent he worked so hard to try and fit in, and when it came to Shaun he was trying hard to fit into Shaun's life too. It was obvious why the other would make such an effort, despite the British male's sarcasm there was something about Shaun's independence and honesty that Desmond liked.

As for Shaun? Well He was well aware of how Desmond felt he was sure, there was no way some as attentive as the British student hadn't noticed the way the younger teen was around him but he seemed to just accept it, though whether it was because he wasn't sure what to do about Desmond's attraction to him, or whether he was simply waiting for the others confession he wasn't sure.

Altair smiled as he looked down at his meal and began to eat before it got cold; he was sure things would work out eventually for both his cousins they were Auditore's after all.

When didn't things work out for them?

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Once dinner was over Altair excused himself and said something about studying and an early night and he wished to not be disturbed, that made his cousin pout as he'd been hoping for Altair to play games with him, Altair just smiled and told his cousin to play with his friend before he winked which made his younger cousin bloom into a full out tomato red blush, which just made Altair laugh as he headed up to his room.

Once he was alone he leaned against the door and took a deep calming breath; all the noise and activity downstairs was  reduced to background noise, taking a deep breath Altair lay down and closed his eyes, he didn't quite fall asleep he simply rested his eyes until the activity in the house quietened down, when Altiar checked the time it was 11pm, Petruccio and Desmond would be heading to bed around this time, Ezio and Leo would be up a little while longer but probably so focused on each other they wouldn't notice him gone.

Quietly, he set up his bed to make it look like he was sleeping in case anyone checked up on him and then got ready,  he  armed himself with his hidden blades throwing knives and silenced pistols placed a small box in his backpack will all the essential tools he needed to break in and wipe down a crime scene, and then snuck out of the window of the house and off into the night; he knew where James Heller lived, now it was simply a matter of killing him.

Taking a deep breath he headed off into the darkness to make his first kill.

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