The change had gone without incident, manacles in place, with his wolf instincts taking over his mind and sending him into darkness as usual. But after a time, something changed. His consciousness swam back to awareness, muddled and sluggish. He found himself crouching in the corner of the cellar, manacles twisted but still holding, sniffing the air as a familiar presence approached. So Ezio had arrived.
The Assassin approached cautiously, keeping in mind Leonardo’s warning, but he needn’t have worried. Leonardo found himself wagging his tail in happiness and straining to get closer as his friend approached. He even let out a little yip in greeting, causing Ezio to smile warmly.
“Hello, Leonardo,” Ezio waved. “How are you feeling?”
Unable to answer, Leonardo only strained closer. Ezio closed the distance between them, scratching Leonardo behind the ears, causing the werewolf to practically collapse with joy.
But suddenly Ezio was stepping away, headed for the walls behind him. “Now why don’t we see to those chains, eh?”
Leonardo’s ears perked up. He tried to feel alarm as Ezio snatched the keys from their hook and reached for the first manacle on his ankle, but his wolf instincts overrode his concern with the desire to be free. He found himself stilling, whining quietly at the back of his throat as Ezio systematically unlocked each of the manacles.
Once he was fully free, Leonardo landed on all fours and shook himself off, tongue lolling out of his mouth. “Coming?” Ezio called out from the doorway of the cellar, watching him with some amusement. Barking happily, Leonardo followed, tail still wagging.
He wasn’t sure for what reason Ezio had freed him, but the Assassin didn’t waste time with explanations. Instead the moment they were once again outside, he started bounding up the side of the nearest building, gesturing that Leonardo should follow. The wolf did without hesitation, digging claws into the same handholds that Ezio used. They climbed to the roof almost as one. The moment they reached the top, Ezio glanced over, and with a secretive smirk, he started racing off across the rooftops.
Leonardo’s chase instinct flared up, and he howled his joy to the moon, giving chase. The two figures flew across the rooftops of Venezia, the smaller one fleeing from the larger, Ezio ducking and swerving like an acrobat to stay ahead. There seemed to be no set destination, Ezio doubling back often enough that Leonardo would probably have gotten lost if not for his sense of smell, just the enjoyment of the chase.
Eventually though, Ezio seemed to tire of the constant running, and throwing a challenging grin over his shoulder, he gracefully dove off of the edge of the roof. Leonardo skidded to a stop, leaning over just in time to see Ezio hit the pile of hay below. He popped out a second later, covered in hay but laughing like a loon, stumbling out onto the street.
Leonardo didn’t bother aiming for the hay. He merely pounced, landing just in front of Ezio’s path so that the other man bounced hard off of his flank, falling to the street with a yelp of surprised. Feeling smug at finally catching Ezio, Leonardo leaned down and pinned him gently to the ground with one massive paw on his chest. Ezio struggled weakly for a moment, having difficulty breathing past his laughter, and then surrendered, still laughing.
Leonardo watched as he slowly calmed down, until he was quietly staring up at the sky with a smile on his face. “My brother Frederico and I used to do something like that,” he admitted into the silence of the night. Leonardo blinked at the unexpected comment. He hadn’t know that.
“Shortly after I started becoming an Assassin, I would find myself running across rooftops, to get away from guards, to sneak into buildings, for other reasons. And I always pictured him running alongside me. Urging me to be faster. Just like he used to.”
Leonardo’s ears drooped, and he started to move his paw away, but Ezio grabbed it, keeping it pressed to his chest. “I still miss my father and my brothers. I always will. But it hurts...less now. So thank you, Leonardo, for coming with me. I’ve missed just chasing and being chased.”
They lapsed into silence again, but it was a peaceful silence. Eventually Ezio pushed Leonardo’s paw away and rose to his feet. Glancing at the wolf out of the corner of his eye, the smirk returned to his lips. “Race you back to the workshop?” he suggested playfully.
But before Leonardo could even think to respond, the night’s stillness was broken by an ear piercing scream. Snarling in pain and flattening his ears against his head, Leonardo followed Ezio’s line of sight to spot a woman standing in the open doorway of a nearby home, holding a chamber pot, and staring right at him with a look of outright terror.
“Monster! Demon!” she shrieked, throwing the chamber pot at them. It didn’t make it halfway across the street, but the sound of shattering pottery woke a few of the neighbours. Lights came on and windows were flung open as people looked outside to see what all the commotion was about. Suddenly the night was filled with screams as more and more people caught sight of him.
Shrinking down in pain from all the noise, Leonardo began to look frantically about for an escape from the growing chaos, but everywhere he looked more people appeared, pointing and shouting. In the distance he could hear soldiers coming to investigate the commotion.
“Leonardo, this way!” Ezio’s voice broke through the chaos, catching Leonardo’s attention. He looked up to see Ezio hopping over a low wall into a courtyard between streets. Eager to escape the scene, Leonardo rushed after him, leaping over the wall and ducking into the shadows. There Ezio was waiting for him.
“Follow me,” he whispered, and then he darted out into the street beyond, keeping close to the shadows and moving quickly. Leonardo could never manage to be so stealthy with his bulky form, but Ezio seemed to compensate for that, leading them down the darkest and emptiest streets he could find, using every bit of his experience escaping from the scenes of his assassinations to get them as far away from the people as possible.
For a while they thought they might have escaped, but just as they were stopping to catch their breath they were stumbled upon by a regular patrol. The alarm was shouted, and once again Ezio and Leonardo were forced to run, though Leonardo was sure Ezio could stop at any time. He was rather unnoticeable next to Leonardo’s monstrous form. But Ezio stayed with him, leading the way, even though he must have been exhausted by then. He stayed.
They found shelter near the shipyard, ducking into an abandoned storehouse. Ezio found a corner for them to hide in, full of straw that closely matched Leonardo’s fur colour. They curled up together, Leonardo listening with perked up ears as the patrols of soldiers thundered past their hiding place, shouting and hollering. They waited until the guards were long gone before Ezio climbed out of the hay and crept to the door to check if the coast was clear.
He came back wearing a worried frown. “The guards are gone for now,” he reported, “but we’re across the city from your workshop now, and dawn is not that far away.”
Leonardo jolted as he realized that it was true. The sky was much lighter now than it had been when they’d been running over the rooftops.
“I do not believe we will be able to get you back to your workshop in time. And now that so many people have seen you, the guards will know that they are searching for a werewolf. If they spot you in the morning with no clothing, even they are not stupid enough to miss what that implies. Cazzo!” he swore loudly, kicking at a stone on the ground. He began pacing furiously. “This is all my fault.”
Leonardo whined softly, inching forward to bump his head against Ezio’s shoulder, stopping the man in his tracks. Ezio remained rigid and furious for a moment more, and then all at once slumped.
“I suppose there’s no helping it now. Better to come up with a plan than berate myself, is that what you’re saying?”
Leonardo licked his face.
Chuckling, Ezio scratched Leonardo’s head. Slowly a thoughtful expression settled on his features.
“Hmmmm, perhaps if we...” He jerked his head up and grinned as an idea came to him. “Yes! Of course! That will be perfetto!”
Leonardo tilted his head and whined in confusion.
“Don’t worry, my friend,” Ezio exclaimed excitedly, “you have nothing to fear. I will take care of everything! Just follow my lead.”
Ezio led them back out into the streets. He was less careful about avoiding patrols, this time obviously heading for a destination. Leonardo kept sniffing the air, trying to keep track of when they would be discovered, and signalling Ezio with a rumbling growl or a snarl in the correct direction. Then whenever they were stumbled upon, Ezio dispatched of the guards almost before Leonardo caught sight of them. Thankfully they were only discovered twice on their journey, so they weren’t delayed too much. Even still, the sky was almost fully lit by the time Ezio announced they had arrived.
They were standing behind a familiar bordello. Leonardo’s nose was swiftly filled with the scents of sex and sweat, and he wondered how he hadn’t noticed before. Wrinkling his snout in disgust, he was about to glare at Ezio in confusion when the sun pierced the horizon and he felt the changes come over him.
He was barely able to remain silent as he returned to human form, the pain lesser than when he became a wolf, but still great. Ezio watched with a worried expression, but did not approach until Leonardo was fully human, for which he was grateful. Only then did Ezio remove his cape to drape it over Leonardo’s shoulders.
“Ezio, why are we here?” he asked the moment he was sure he could speak. His voice was scratchy, his throat dry and sore.
“It is a brothel,” Ezio explained quickly. “It is not unusual for a man to be found naked here. Go inside and ask Sister Teodora for some clothing, I’m sure the girls have collected a few forgotten pieces over time. And if any guards see you wearing unfitting clothes, as long as they spot you leaving the brothel or smell the courtesans on you, they will make their assumptions.”
Leonardo fought back a blush. “You want me to go inside? Wearing nothing but this?” he gestured to the cape.
“Yes. And you must hurry, otherwise another patrol will come by and see you sneak in. There will be talk, of course,” Ezio looked at him regretfully, “but better the people assume you visited a brothel just once than they suspect the truth.”
Realizing the wisdom of Ezio’s plan, Leonardo could only sigh, shifting the cape to wrap it around his waist. He thought he might have caught Ezio staring at him as he moved to cover himself more completely, but when he looked up Ezio was glancing down the streets on either side looking for guards.
“Go now,” he instructed softly, stepping aside.
“What about you?” Leonardo asked, suddenly concerned with Ezio’s part of this plan.
“I’ll be drawing their attention as far from here as I can,” Ezio explained. The longer I can keep them occupied, the less likely you’ll be seen, and the safer you’ll be.”
Although Leonardo wanted to baulk at the implication that he needed protection, he had to admit that Ezio’s plan was sound. Besides, while Leonardo could now take care of himself in a fight, it was his reputation they were both more concerned about at the moment.
“Go!” Ezio ordered again, this time reinforcing it with a light shove towards the door, and then he was gone, dashing across the street and down an alley, disappearing like a ghost. Leonardo hesitated only a moment more, gathering his courage and fighting down his embarrassment, and then he stepped forward to knock on the door.
Fill: When the Autumn Moon is Bright - Part Three [2/4]
The Assassin approached cautiously, keeping in mind Leonardo’s warning, but he needn’t have worried. Leonardo found himself wagging his tail in happiness and straining to get closer as his friend approached. He even let out a little yip in greeting, causing Ezio to smile warmly.
“Hello, Leonardo,” Ezio waved. “How are you feeling?”
Unable to answer, Leonardo only strained closer. Ezio closed the distance between them, scratching Leonardo behind the ears, causing the werewolf to practically collapse with joy.
But suddenly Ezio was stepping away, headed for the walls behind him. “Now why don’t we see to those chains, eh?”
Leonardo’s ears perked up. He tried to feel alarm as Ezio snatched the keys from their hook and reached for the first manacle on his ankle, but his wolf instincts overrode his concern with the desire to be free. He found himself stilling, whining quietly at the back of his throat as Ezio systematically unlocked each of the manacles.
Once he was fully free, Leonardo landed on all fours and shook himself off, tongue lolling out of his mouth. “Coming?” Ezio called out from the doorway of the cellar, watching him with some amusement. Barking happily, Leonardo followed, tail still wagging.
He wasn’t sure for what reason Ezio had freed him, but the Assassin didn’t waste time with explanations. Instead the moment they were once again outside, he started bounding up the side of the nearest building, gesturing that Leonardo should follow. The wolf did without hesitation, digging claws into the same handholds that Ezio used. They climbed to the roof almost as one. The moment they reached the top, Ezio glanced over, and with a secretive smirk, he started racing off across the rooftops.
Leonardo’s chase instinct flared up, and he howled his joy to the moon, giving chase. The two figures flew across the rooftops of Venezia, the smaller one fleeing from the larger, Ezio ducking and swerving like an acrobat to stay ahead. There seemed to be no set destination, Ezio doubling back often enough that Leonardo would probably have gotten lost if not for his sense of smell, just the enjoyment of the chase.
Eventually though, Ezio seemed to tire of the constant running, and throwing a challenging grin over his shoulder, he gracefully dove off of the edge of the roof. Leonardo skidded to a stop, leaning over just in time to see Ezio hit the pile of hay below. He popped out a second later, covered in hay but laughing like a loon, stumbling out onto the street.
Leonardo didn’t bother aiming for the hay. He merely pounced, landing just in front of Ezio’s path so that the other man bounced hard off of his flank, falling to the street with a yelp of surprised. Feeling smug at finally catching Ezio, Leonardo leaned down and pinned him gently to the ground with one massive paw on his chest. Ezio struggled weakly for a moment, having difficulty breathing past his laughter, and then surrendered, still laughing.
Leonardo watched as he slowly calmed down, until he was quietly staring up at the sky with a smile on his face. “My brother Frederico and I used to do something like that,” he admitted into the silence of the night. Leonardo blinked at the unexpected comment. He hadn’t know that.
“Shortly after I started becoming an Assassin, I would find myself running across rooftops, to get away from guards, to sneak into buildings, for other reasons. And I always pictured him running alongside me. Urging me to be faster. Just like he used to.”
Leonardo’s ears drooped, and he started to move his paw away, but Ezio grabbed it, keeping it pressed to his chest. “I still miss my father and my brothers. I always will. But it hurts...less now. So thank you, Leonardo, for coming with me. I’ve missed just chasing and being chased.”
They lapsed into silence again, but it was a peaceful silence. Eventually Ezio pushed Leonardo’s paw away and rose to his feet. Glancing at the wolf out of the corner of his eye, the smirk returned to his lips. “Race you back to the workshop?” he suggested playfully.
But before Leonardo could even think to respond, the night’s stillness was broken by an ear piercing scream. Snarling in pain and flattening his ears against his head, Leonardo followed Ezio’s line of sight to spot a woman standing in the open doorway of a nearby home, holding a chamber pot, and staring right at him with a look of outright terror.
“Monster! Demon!” she shrieked, throwing the chamber pot at them. It didn’t make it halfway across the street, but the sound of shattering pottery woke a few of the neighbours. Lights came on and windows were flung open as people looked outside to see what all the commotion was about. Suddenly the night was filled with screams as more and more people caught sight of him.
Shrinking down in pain from all the noise, Leonardo began to look frantically about for an escape from the growing chaos, but everywhere he looked more people appeared, pointing and shouting. In the distance he could hear soldiers coming to investigate the commotion.
“Leonardo, this way!” Ezio’s voice broke through the chaos, catching Leonardo’s attention. He looked up to see Ezio hopping over a low wall into a courtyard between streets. Eager to escape the scene, Leonardo rushed after him, leaping over the wall and ducking into the shadows. There Ezio was waiting for him.
“Follow me,” he whispered, and then he darted out into the street beyond, keeping close to the shadows and moving quickly. Leonardo could never manage to be so stealthy with his bulky form, but Ezio seemed to compensate for that, leading them down the darkest and emptiest streets he could find, using every bit of his experience escaping from the scenes of his assassinations to get them as far away from the people as possible.
For a while they thought they might have escaped, but just as they were stopping to catch their breath they were stumbled upon by a regular patrol. The alarm was shouted, and once again Ezio and Leonardo were forced to run, though Leonardo was sure Ezio could stop at any time. He was rather unnoticeable next to Leonardo’s monstrous form. But Ezio stayed with him, leading the way, even though he must have been exhausted by then. He stayed.
They found shelter near the shipyard, ducking into an abandoned storehouse. Ezio found a corner for them to hide in, full of straw that closely matched Leonardo’s fur colour. They curled up together, Leonardo listening with perked up ears as the patrols of soldiers thundered past their hiding place, shouting and hollering. They waited until the guards were long gone before Ezio climbed out of the hay and crept to the door to check if the coast was clear.
He came back wearing a worried frown. “The guards are gone for now,” he reported, “but we’re across the city from your workshop now, and dawn is not that far away.”
Leonardo jolted as he realized that it was true. The sky was much lighter now than it had been when they’d been running over the rooftops.
“I do not believe we will be able to get you back to your workshop in time. And now that so many people have seen you, the guards will know that they are searching for a werewolf. If they spot you in the morning with no clothing, even they are not stupid enough to miss what that implies. Cazzo!” he swore loudly, kicking at a stone on the ground. He began pacing furiously. “This is all my fault.”
Leonardo whined softly, inching forward to bump his head against Ezio’s shoulder, stopping the man in his tracks. Ezio remained rigid and furious for a moment more, and then all at once slumped.
“I suppose there’s no helping it now. Better to come up with a plan than berate myself, is that what you’re saying?”
Leonardo licked his face.
Chuckling, Ezio scratched Leonardo’s head. Slowly a thoughtful expression settled on his features.
“Hmmmm, perhaps if we...” He jerked his head up and grinned as an idea came to him. “Yes! Of course! That will be perfetto!”
Leonardo tilted his head and whined in confusion.
“Don’t worry, my friend,” Ezio exclaimed excitedly, “you have nothing to fear. I will take care of everything! Just follow my lead.”
Ezio led them back out into the streets. He was less careful about avoiding patrols, this time obviously heading for a destination. Leonardo kept sniffing the air, trying to keep track of when they would be discovered, and signalling Ezio with a rumbling growl or a snarl in the correct direction. Then whenever they were stumbled upon, Ezio dispatched of the guards almost before Leonardo caught sight of them. Thankfully they were only discovered twice on their journey, so they weren’t delayed too much. Even still, the sky was almost fully lit by the time Ezio announced they had arrived.
They were standing behind a familiar bordello. Leonardo’s nose was swiftly filled with the scents of sex and sweat, and he wondered how he hadn’t noticed before. Wrinkling his snout in disgust, he was about to glare at Ezio in confusion when the sun pierced the horizon and he felt the changes come over him.
He was barely able to remain silent as he returned to human form, the pain lesser than when he became a wolf, but still great. Ezio watched with a worried expression, but did not approach until Leonardo was fully human, for which he was grateful. Only then did Ezio remove his cape to drape it over Leonardo’s shoulders.
“Ezio, why are we here?” he asked the moment he was sure he could speak. His voice was scratchy, his throat dry and sore.
“It is a brothel,” Ezio explained quickly. “It is not unusual for a man to be found naked here. Go inside and ask Sister Teodora for some clothing, I’m sure the girls have collected a few forgotten pieces over time. And if any guards see you wearing unfitting clothes, as long as they spot you leaving the brothel or smell the courtesans on you, they will make their assumptions.”
Leonardo fought back a blush. “You want me to go inside? Wearing nothing but this?” he gestured to the cape.
“Yes. And you must hurry, otherwise another patrol will come by and see you sneak in. There will be talk, of course,” Ezio looked at him regretfully, “but better the people assume you visited a brothel just once than they suspect the truth.”
Realizing the wisdom of Ezio’s plan, Leonardo could only sigh, shifting the cape to wrap it around his waist. He thought he might have caught Ezio staring at him as he moved to cover himself more completely, but when he looked up Ezio was glancing down the streets on either side looking for guards.
“Go now,” he instructed softly, stepping aside.
“What about you?” Leonardo asked, suddenly concerned with Ezio’s part of this plan.
“I’ll be drawing their attention as far from here as I can,” Ezio explained. The longer I can keep them occupied, the less likely you’ll be seen, and the safer you’ll be.”
Although Leonardo wanted to baulk at the implication that he needed protection, he had to admit that Ezio’s plan was sound. Besides, while Leonardo could now take care of himself in a fight, it was his reputation they were both more concerned about at the moment.
“Go!” Ezio ordered again, this time reinforcing it with a light shove towards the door, and then he was gone, dashing across the street and down an alley, disappearing like a ghost. Leonardo hesitated only a moment more, gathering his courage and fighting down his embarrassment, and then he stepped forward to knock on the door.