Kink Meme - Assassin's Creed pt. 5

[asscreedkinkmeme]

Assassin's Creed Kink Meme pt.5
Fill Only

Join or Die

✩ Comment anonymously with a character/pairing and a kink/prompt.

✩ Comment is filled by another anonymous with fanfiction/art/or any other appropriate medium.

✩ One request per post, but fill the request as much as you want.

✩ The fill/request doesn't necessarily need to be smut.

✩ Don't flame, if you have nothing good to say, don't say anything.

✩ Have a question? Feel free to PM me.

✩ Last, but not least: HAVE FUN!

List of Kinks
Kink Meme Masterlist
New Kink Meme Masterlist
(Livejorunal) Archive
(Delicious.com) Archive
#2 (Livejournal) Archive
#2 (Delicious.com) Archive
(Dreamwidth) Archive <- Currently active
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Fills Only
Discussion

Comments

Haytham/Connor, Alpha/Omega Dynamics

[(Anonymous)]

Haytham and Connor imprint on each other by accident, maybe in the jail or in the abandoned church. No preference as to which person is the alpha and which is the omega, but make it awkward and filthy.

bonus points for knotting...

Re: Haytham/Connor, Alpha/Omega Dynamics

[(Anonymous)]

Yes please! I kinda want Haytham to be Omega for the luls XD And Because I can see royal bitching/snarking from him while bottoming >:D Either is awesome however, this needs to be filled~ <3

Re: Haytham/Connor, Alpha/Omega Dynamics

[(Anonymous)]

SECONDED LIKE BURNING

Re: Haytham/Connor, Alpha/Omega Dynamics

[(Anonymous)]

OH JESUS SHIT I WILL GIVE SOMEONE MY SOUL IF THEY SERIOUSLY DO THIS HOLY HELL ITS LIKE

EVERYTHING I COULD EVER WANT /AND MORE/

espec. if conner is omega i mean what

Fill

[(Anonymous)]

This starts right after Haytham jumps Connor in the church.

I’m sorry.
_________

Connor knows what is happening the moment his father’s hand touches his chest, even through the layers of fabric. The proximity alone is enough to start the imprinting process. All thoughts of Benjamin Church instantly vanish, replaced by the need to solidify the growing bond with as much physical contact as possible. Through the rising heat and confusion, he can barely tell that his father is similarly affected before he feels, rather than see, the bite Haytham leaves on the side of his neck, marking him, as he lowers himself to cover the body underneath him. Connor can feel Haytham’s growing erection against his own, but it’s not enough to satisfy the instinctive need to get closer. His hands scramble to remove all the clothes obstructing his way to his father’s skin. Haytham, more skilled, has already pushed aside all offending garments and is biting his way down Connor’s chest, submitting to his alpha instincts of marking what was his. Connor moans, trying to convey that what he really needs is more than what just feels like teasing touches.

To Connor’s distress, Haytham pushes himself away to remove his outfit, far too complicated for Connor in his state. When Connor understands the reason for the move, he too disrobes, all too eagerly but rather clumsily. When Haytham’s heat is back against his own, the sensation is almost intolerable.

The finger sliding inside him, slick with oil, is simultaneously too much and not enough. His legs spread of their own accord almost instantly. Another one follows soon after. It would hurt, but it can’t, not when the only coherent thought that goes through his head is more. He would beg for it if he could. Suddenly, Haytham reaches the spot inside of him that makes him keen and spread his legs even farther. A third finger joins the others, moving faster and faster, before they all leave him.

Despite being an omega, Connor has never acted like the popular idea of one for people outside his tribe. It was one of the problems between Achilles and him. The old man couldn’t understand why an omega kept standing up to him. Connor quickly realised that if he wanted to keep the respect of his allies, he’d better make them forget that he was an omega. Because of this, he always refuses offers from alphas to take him to bed.

This is why he is completely unprepared for the feeling of Haytham’s hardness inside of him, pounding relentlessly, Haytham having lost all measure of control the moment he entered his son. It does hurts, but Connor could not care less. Still, even then he is not satisfied. He needs more, and can tell it’s coming closer with each thrust. He’s clawing Haytham’s shoulder, leaving welts, arching every time Haytham fills him again and screaming incoherently, when he finally feels the knot. For a few seconds, Connor is worried that it will not fit, but he should not have. Feeling it breach him, connecting him and Haytham for a while, sends him over the edge and he blacks out.

Re: Fill

[(Anonymous)]

I love you <3 ... is there more???

OP LOVES YOU

[(Anonymous)]

thank you so much!! that was sooo hot.

Re: Fill

[(Anonymous)]

*wipes drool* Please? Is there more? *wipes more drool*

Fill Part 2

[(Anonymous)]

Some lines in this are heavily inspired by the game.

________

When he wakes up, Connor can’t tell whether he was out for a few moments or for hours. It does not matter to him anyway. He feels safe and warm, plastered against his alpha, Haytham’s knot still tying them together.

Seconds later, the reality of what just happened hits him. He just bonded with his own father. He already knew his parents hadn’t imprinted, both of them being alphas anyway, but he had never imagined he would be Haytham’s bondmate. Imprinting on family members can happen, and it is somewhat accepted because it cannot be controlled, but children born of such unions are frowned upon and to be avoided. Connor spends a few seconds for disappointment; maybe he would have wanted children someday, after his village has been liberated. Sadly, such matters are second to the fact that Connor’s alpha is the Grand Master of the Templar Order, one he already knows he has to kill.

"Are you awake yet, boy ?"

The sound of his father’s voice throws him out of his reflections. Reflexes ingrained into him by Achilles’ training make him search for his hidden blade, discarded nearby, to kill his enemy when he is vulnerable. At the same time, the idea of murdering his own alpha makes him want to kill himself in shame. Connor does not even know if he would survive the patricide without going insane at the loss and horror of being the cause of his bondmate’s death.

"Whatever you’re thinking of doing, stop it. It’s useless. At the very least, we’ll be stuck to each other for another thirty minutes, and I don’t want to be tied to a corpse for even half as long."

Damn him. He’s right, of course. Connor can’t act one way or the other for now.

"After this, we’re going after Benjamin Church. This was why you were here for anyway, wasn’t it ? You want his supplies, I want him dead. Our interests are aligned. I see no reason not to work together for now."

"You cannot treat our bond as something to be pushed aside for later, father. I have no intention of working with Templars or Redcoats, and I very much doubt you would join the Assassins for me."

Haytham sighs.

"I should have expected that the son Ziio and I had wouldn’t be a malleable omega, but this would have been so much easier if you were. The Templars do not support the Crown. We want the same things that you do: Freedom, Justice, Independence. The imprint is not going to go away; sacrifices will need to be made, or assassinations will have to be ordered, I suppose, as I don’t think we could kill each other."

Connor wonders if he could just order Stephane or Duncan to take Haytham out, but dismisses the idea the moment it crosses his mind. Haytham is a skilled assassin; Connor himself can barely compare. Sending one of his recruits would be akin to killing them himself.

The thought and subsequent dismissal have nothing to do with how betrayed he feels at the idea that his own alpha considers having him disposed, or the uncontrollable fear that overcomes him when he thinks of Haytham’s life being in danger. He is a rational individual, he will not be ruled by his emotions about this, he will not. He is used to the impulses his omega nature impose on him, and he will not bow to those.

Despite his resolutions, he realises that attempting to end Haytham’s life, directly or indirectly, is not something he can do, but that does not mean they have to be together. They could part way, make sure they never see each other again.

This is another dead end: if Connor leaves friends and family, Haytham and the Templars would have won, free to support the British army without interference. He also knows without asking that his father would never leave his life’s work for Connor’s sake if he asked now.

There is only one option left for Connor. He can’t get rid of Haytham, but he has no idea if the reverse is true. As the alpha in a bonded pair, Haytham should feel the need to protect and care for his omega, but who knows if he really does. If it is the case, Connor might just be able to use those needs against him. If he can make Haytham genuinely care about him, if he can link the need to take care of him to the realisation of his goals, he might just convince Haytham to support him. The major flaw in this plan is that Haytham could easily try to do exactly the same, and would probably be a lot more skilled about it. Quite frankly, even he can tell his plan is more than slightly ridiculous and doomed to fail, but he can’t see valid alternatives. He can’t be an assassin while fearing an encounter with the leader of the Templars. Haytham has to quit. There’s only one way for Connor to make this happen. He has to get closer to his father.

"Fine. A truce. As soon as we can, we go after Church."

Re: Fill Part 2

[(Anonymous)]

OH! This plan!! I approve of this plan, and I can't can't can't wait to see how he carries it out, this is turning out so fucking fantastic!!

Re: Fill Part 2

[(Anonymous)]

Haha! This right here, So much win!!

Fill Part 3

[(Anonymous)]

Once again, the scenes are based on specific moments in the game.

______

It takes about twenty minutes for Connor to realize that his plan will not work. There’s no chance of him be able to manipulate his father while he’s allowing Haytham to walk all over him, ordering him around and letting Connor do all the work. His objections are waived without a single thought, and yet, when his stupid father get captured by Church’s men, he’s over there before he can think about it, killing everyone near him while Haytham watches. Then, just after Connor saved his life, Haytham has the gall to leave, right in the middle of the fight, but not before summoning him to New York, like a servant.

The worst of it is that the outrage he feels at this rather cavalier treatment is dwarfed by the instant loneliness following his mate’s depart.

The whole situation is going to be a pain.

____

When he finally reaches New York, a month after his first meeting with his father, it’s more than time. The people at Davenport Homestead have all been worried about him. He’s been moody, impatient and recluse, and they have no idea why. It’s not like he can tell them that he ended up bonded with his own father, who he had sworn to kill, and that he misses him the way he never missed anyone, not even his mother. It’s like there’s a part of him that’s missing, and Connor hates that this part is Haytham. Imprinting is supposed to be a happy event. It’s meeting the person you’re fated to be with. It’s not supposed to force you to reconsider everything you believed in. It should be easy, finally being complete. But nothing was ever easy in Connor’s life, he should have known his bonding would follow the same pattern. So here he is, despite trying to fight it very step of the way, going back to the alpha who demonstrated how little he cares about him, because he needs to. If he needed a confirmation that they can’t be apart, he has one. He only hopes that the feeling is mutual, because the only thing that would sweeten this deal is the knowledge that Haytham suffered just as much.

_________

He should have known he would not be granted even this. When they finally meet, in a street at sunset, Haytham looks perfectly alright and is all business. Fine. If this is how Haytham wants to play it, Connor will play along. They need to reach Benjamin Church and take back the supplies. This is a bigger cause than Connor and his daddy issues.

As they jump from roof to roof, Connor can’t help himself. He has to understand why Haytham supports the Templars, if only to see if he can be swayed away from them. Connor can feel the tension rising between them as the argument degenerates, heavy in the air. It peaks when they reach the topic of Washington.

"The only difference, Connor - the only difference between myself and those you aid – is that I do not feign affection."

The biting kiss that immediately follows this particular statement contains nothing like affection. It’s all pent-up frustration, anger and lust. Connor is pushed against the windows of the structure behind him, and spends a second to hope that there is no one watching from behind said windows. He would never let another templar this close to him without reacting, but his defenses can’t rise against Haytham. He missed his presence too much to throw anything like an objection to what is happening. Haytham has gripped his hair and he’s pushing his head back to bite him again, exactly where he first did. Here it is again, the need to mark Connor as Haytham’s for the world to see.

The emptiness that started receding the moment they met in the street fades faster when they touch. Connor wonders if he should interpret the urgency behind Haytham’s every move as a mind game to use Connor, to make him believe he is wanted, to tame him and bring him to his side, or as a tentative to quicken this healing process, which is Connor’s reason for permitting Haytham to undo his breeches and slide a hand inside, taking a firm hold of him. It might even be pure lust, created by the presence of one’s bondmate after a long absence. Whatever his motivations are, Connor is not in a state to think about it anymore, not when his father’s hand is stroking him, the thumb occasionally teasing the crown. Connor bites back his moans. They are on a roof, any curious soldier could come and catch them. They need to get this over with as soon as possible. They are on a mission, after all. He unties his father’ pants, pulls him out, pushes himself flush against Haytham and takes them both in hand. He smirks at the sounds Haytham makes when they touch. It is nice to know the Grand Master can’t be in perfect control all the time. Soon, Haytham’s fingers lace with his over their flesh. A few more thrusts, and Connor is gone. He slumps against Haytham, who follows soon after.

They are assassins, men of actions. They both understand that now is not the time for a chat about what happened and what will happen, but the time to go after Benjamin Church before he leaves them empty-handed. They tidy themselves up as much as they can and depart.

Fill Part 4

[(Anonymous)]

This time, Connor fully expects his father to be both demanding and useless. He is not surprised at all when they arrive and Haytham tries to leave him at the gate, and then waits for him to be ready and mocks him for asking about support.

What he did not expect was Haytham asking about his mother, telling him that he wondered what his life would be like if he had stayed with her. Connor knows that if his father had been with him when he was a child, the chances of them bonding would have been infinitesimal. Nobody knows why, but only estranged and distant relations bond. If… He can’t start following such a line of reasoning. He’ll go mad.

When Haytham learns that Kaniehtí:io is dead, Connor does not doubt that the expression on his face is genuine. Shock and dismay have overcome Haytham. Denial follows suit when he hears that Charles Lee is the murderer. In a way, it pleases Connor to know that Haytham can care and trust people the way everyone else does. Maybe, just maybe, he can learn to care even half as much about Connor. For the plan.

_______

It turns out to be a trap. Connor has to kill people to protect Haytham, again. Haytham kill someone traitorously, again. Quite frankly, Connor has had enough of being played with for the moment. Let Haytham come after him next.

________

"Awkward" does not even begin to describe the trip on the Aquila. This is Connor’s ship, and these are Connor’s men, but to everyone on this ship, Connor is Haytham’s. Others can tell by scent that they are bonded when they’re close, and it’s difficult for them to follow orders when the captain is constantly being questioned by his alpha. They wonder if they should listen to Haytham, or just ignore him. The silver lining is that no one on the ship has any idea who Haytham is outside of his previously hidden bondmate. Connor intends to keep things this way.

It takes a while for the men to understand that the captain does not care one bit about any demands his alpha might make, but when they do, things settle down. Once the awkwardness passes, curiosity replaces it. Their captain is unusual for an omega, but definitively not unattractive. Many alphas have made passes at him before, but all were rejected. They’re pretty sure he hasn’t been bonded for a long time: it’s obvious that his alpha and he are not comfortable around each other, to say the least. Rumor has it he used to bed other omegas, and yet no one can prove it.

Connor dutifully refuses to acknowledge any salacious comment that reaches his ear, but his flush betrays him. Haytham, damn him, is thoroughly amused by the speculations about their sex life, and would probably join in just to embarrass Connor further if the situation was any less dire. They’ve just reached the enemy’s ship: they should prepare for the attack. Now is not the time for idle chatter.

________

Benjamin Church is dead.

Connor can’t calm down. The Aquilla is almost back to port. It suffered damages and the men are wounded. As soon as he arrives, he’ll have to get Doctor White to take a look at them and make arrangements for reparations.
At the same time, he doesn’t want Haytham wandering around unsupervised near his people. The news that he’s bonded now will spread like wildfire, and Connor can’t deal with Myriam and the others asking questions with Haytham laughing at him in the background, being as unhelpful as he can.

He will delegate. He tells Faulkner to do whatever is necessary for ship and crew to get better as soon as they hit the shore, as he has urgent need to discuss with their guest. From his expression, Faulkner does not think that "discussing with his guest" should take priority over the wellbeing of his people.

It’s moments like these that tell Connor he should have never left his village.

________

Once the ship is moored and the sailors have started to land, Connor grabs Haytham by the arm and drags him to his (their) cabin.

"We need to talk"

"I don’t think so. You need to talk. I need to rejoin civilization."

"Go ahead. This time, you’ll be the one who will have to find me when the bond becomes unbearable. Or did I imagine your hands on me on the top of a roof while we were trying to find Church ? If you don’t remember, the bite you left on the side of my neck is still visible. Do you want to see it ?"

"Must you be so crude ? If you’re to be my omega, I’ll have to teach you better manners, by any means necessary."

Connor shivers. He can recognize the attempt at deflection, but that does not mean it doesn’t affect him. Haytham continues.

"As much as it hurts my pride to admit it, you have a point. An arrangement of some sort is obviously needed. Come visit me, once a week should do. I’ll be in New York for a while. We’ll take care of it."

Trust his father to proclaim how life will be for now on this way. Before he can share his toughs on the subject, he’s interrupted by Faulkner’s voice, clearly audible even though he should be nowhere nearby.

"Connor ! Are you done "discussing" yet ? The Aquila needs your attention more than your alpha does !"

"I believe that’s my cue to leave. I shall look forward to our next meeting." This said with a (completely unnecessary) leer as Haytham escapes.

Connor sighs. Back to work, then.

Fill : Interlude

[(Anonymous)]

And now, for something slightly different.

_____

If Haytham had known that having a son would bring him this much trouble, he’d have done things much differently. Maybe he should have taken him from Ziio and raised him within the Order. The boy is talented enough, he would have made such a useful pawn if he did not have all those silly idea about freedom. That would have taken care of this ridiculous bond business.

A bondmate was never something Haytham wanted. Relationships were secondary to the realization of his goals. He had vaguely hoped that, should he ever met his omega, they would be pliable, a nice and polite counterpart to help his politic ambitions, one that would look good standing by his side and would not question his methods or allegiances. The reality could not be farther for his wishes.

Underneath him, Charles lets out a feeble moan. Haytham figures he should tell him that he’s bonded now, but Charles has been in love with him for years, and Haytham knows he won’t take this particular news very well. Charles can be … unstable when pushed, and Haytham can’t afford to jeopardize the Order. He’s still disturbed by the news of Ziio’s death at Charles’ hand, but there’s nothing he can do about it, so better let sleeping dogs lie. Right now, the Templars need Charles. He’s completely devoted to the cause, and to Haytham, which is a nice bonus. Oh, Haytham likes him well enough, he’s a dear friend, one that he does not want to hurt uselessly. He also has … other uses.

"Haytham … Please"

Haytham figures he teased Charles long enough. He pulls out the four fingers that were inside of Charles, slightly too much but Charles likes it that way. Without giving him a chance to adjust, he fills him in one quick thrust and start using him ruthlessly. He needed a partner with whom he could keep complete control, and Charles is always too happy to fill that role for him. Fucking Charles won’t stop the sensation of loss that is his constant companion of late, but it will quiet the unrest he feels for a while. He pushes inside of Charles as far as he can once more and Charles spills, untouched. Haytham wonders what Connor would look like if he was as enamored with him as Charles is, if he was in Haytham’s bed by choice and not by obligation. Would he let Haytham touch and tease for hours, the way he likes to, before giving him satisfaction ? Does he enjoy pain, like some omega do ? So many unanswered questions.

Beneath him, Charles is whimpering softly, overstimulated, and Haytham comes to the idea of Connor making similar sounds.

Fill Part 5

[(Anonymous)]

Ladies and/or Gentlemen, thank you so much for the comments. You’re all awesome.

_____

The trip between the Aquila and the manor is shorter than Connor would like it to be right now. He’s considering visiting his tribe for a few days. This might just be enough time to let rumors die down a little. He knows he will not escape the curiosity of the ragtag bunch of misfits that lives in Davenport Homestead, but he’s not looking forward to it, and he’s only a man.

Connor decides that avoidance this extreme is akin to cowardice, but the day is still young. He’ll go see if he can find one of the trinkets Peg Leg likes so much somewhere near the Frontier.

________

Strategic mistake. When he comes back, he spots Myriam hiding in a tree, obviously waiting for him in ambush. He did not think of being stealthy while entering his own domain. She saw him: trying to run would be juvenile and, ultimately, futile. He continues steadily, under Myriam’s watchful gaze, until he reaches the small group of workers apparently awaiting his return by Oliver’s place. Good, at least there might be alcohol involved.

From what he gathers, Doctor White brought Diana along to take care of the sailors, who chatted her up and put her up to date with current events. When she came back, she told Catherine, who told Terry, while Doctor White just happened to discuss it with Prudence, the list goes on. The only person who might not know yet is Achilles, because Connor is lucky that way.

"Yes, I’m bonded. It’s a man. His name is Haytham. I met him while I was away. There will be no talk of marriage, sex, children or moving in."

"No wedding ? You’ll break Achilles’ heart. I’m sure he dreamed of giving you away at the altar." Connor might just strangle Myriam, if he does not die of mortification before.

"A wedding by your laws would be meaningless to my people. Also, I do not even believe in your god."

"Your alpha might." This from Norris, who would never do something he thinks would displease his own alpha. To be fair, Connor would not want to displease Myriam either.

"I do not care."

Prudence frowns. "Connor ! That is no way to start a healthy relationship ! I understand that this is new to you and that it can be disturbing, but meeting my bondmate was the best thing that ever happened to me. Give him a chance before rejecting him that way."

And that’s it, Connor’s leaving before this conversation become even more unmanageable. He’ll take Achilles over this insanity any day.

_______

He was wrong. So very wrong. Even Prudence and her unreasonable advices are better than Achilles’ disapproving face, and he did not even tell him about imprinting on Haytham yet. With all that happened, he had forgotten that his last conversation with Achilles hadn’t exactly been pleasant. An apology is in order. Achilles also deserves to know the truth. Better he learns it from him than from one of the residents, ignorant of the real ties between Connor and Haytham.

"Achilles, I own you an apology. It was wrong of me to say the things I did." He takes a deep breath. "Sadly, what I said hardly matter to me anymore. I have more pressing news you should know. I… When I left to hunt Church…" The sounds die out. He can’t make himself admit what happened.

The worry that was filling Achilles’ face is being replaced by impatience. "Speak, boy. If this is so important that our quarrel is dwarfed by it, I should know about it."

Connor steals himself. "When I was hunting for Church, I imprinted."

In any other circumstances, Achilles’ outraged expression would be hilarious. "You imprinted on Church ! What a foolish, wasteful, dangerous thing to do. Tell me, right now, that he’s not making you join the Templars. Does he know you’re an assassin ? "

"I imprinted on my father."

Achilles freezes. He stares at Connor, realizes that this is not a joke, then sags in his seat.

Achilles has always looked old to Connor, but never as old as he does now.

After a while, Achilles speaks. "You have to kill him."

"I can’t."

"He’s the Grand Master of the Templar Order ! He leads them, he plans for them, he’s the heart we must remove to throw them into disarray ! You’re the only active assassin here right now. Who will kill him if you don’t ? "

"I know all this. I wish I could, but I can’t."

Achilles spits on the floor. "Then our cause is lost."

"Do not say that ! I can still fight, I can still attack other templars, I can still foil their plans !" I can still protect my village, Connor does not say.

"For how long ? How long before you join him, before our ideals become second to his needs ?"

Connor opens his mouths, but the answer does not come. Trust Achilles to find the weakness in his armor, the things he’s too scared to think about and thus hide to himself.

Achilles can see his inability to respond all over his face.

"As long as you’re not one of them, you’ll be welcome here. I will only ask that you have the courtesy to tell me in person, should you ever reject our creed."

"… Of course."

"Good."

Connor can’t stay here a second longer. He’ll be back, but not tonight.

He has a lot to think about.

Fill Part 6

[(Anonymous)]

Even now that he’s here, in New York, Connor still wonders if he should just turn around and leave. He accomplished plenty for the assassins by himself, he should not need Haytham’s support for this. The Templars’ intelligence network is impressive, but Connor has always found the information he needed by himself, or with Adams and the others’ help if necessary. Just because he can’t find anything about the British army’s movements right now doesn’t mean he has to ask Haytham about what is happening. He could continue with reconnaissance, or go meet Washington. Maybe the general has something for him to do. He could also try to scout out the populace, or meet with one of his recruits in a local bar. Jacob isn’t very far way.

The possibilities are plentiful, but that would mean ignoring the pull of the bond, almost tangible now that they’re both in the same city. Connor still remembers how irritable he was just before meeting Haytham in New York last time. Ellen is too clever by far and correctly deduced that said foul mood was induced by the absence of his bondmate, so he was pretty much thrown out of the Homestead "for his own good". He’ll be scolded if he comes back in a surly mood.

There is also the matter of Haytham’s reaction to the bond. The next time they meet, Connor would prefer not to be ravished in public, if that can be avoided.

All things considered, he should just get it over with and follow the pull to where Haytham is.

_____

Connor did not expect Haytham to be as uninformed about the Redcoats as he was. The smugness he feels when he learns that he’s the one responsible for the failings of the Templars is nurtured by the general feeling of happiness that being near his alpha generates. He’s not any wiser about the Loyalists’ plans, though. If that means they have to spy on officers, so be it. He’ll show Haytham what he can do.

______

That’s it. Connor is doing all spying missions on his own from now on. If he has to tie his father down to stop him from following, so be it. In the end, there will be far less death that way.

What they found needs to be shared with Washington as soon as possible. No matter what Haytham says, Connor is not revealing his hard-won intel to Charles Lee of all people. Connor did all the work, and Haytham will shut up and follow, or he’ll leave, but if Connor has to be in Lee’s presence, he’ll make sure it will be the last time he has to suffer it.

Haytham apparently got the message, because they reach Washington’s camp with surprisingly little opposition considering how much Haytham loathes the man.

Connor greets Washington formally. He can’t quite help it. He’s an omega, and one would have to be blind not to realize that Washington is an alpha. His aura commands respect, and demands that Connor stands straighter. That is until an arm slides around his waist. He jerks slightly and tries to glare off his father, who is apparently too engaged in a staring contest with the General to meet his eyes.

This is ridiculous. Connor did not come here to be caught in a show of dominance between two alphas. They’re bonded, Washington can tell, what else could Haytham want ? They have things they need to be doing, actual important things. He needs to put a stop to this right now. An elbow in Haytham’s side should do nicely. His father curses and pulls away, though not before oh so casually brushing a hand against his neck, right where he has bitten him before. The man is obviously obsessed.

Back to business. Connor warns Washington about the forces from Philadelphia. They’ve barely started preparing a counterattack when they’re interrupted by Haytham unveiling the orders to destroy his village. Connor can’t control the fury that rises in him knowing that he was betrayed by both of them. He can’t think clearly. They’re both responsible. Connor has to leave, now, before he does something he will regret for the rest of his life. His village needs him.

Fill Part 7

[(Anonymous)]

When the door to his room opens and Haytham enters, Connor has no idea how to react, outside of the faint horror at seeing how easily an enemy can enter the manor. He’ll have to talk to Achilles about it.

Or not. There is no way a conversation involving Haytham entering his bedroom will go well. Better forget it. Achilles has been carefully avoiding the topic of Haytham ever since Connor came back with Kanen'tó:kon’s blood staining his hands, and Connor will be eternally grateful for it. He’s been trying to forget he ever met his father. He had hoped that with time he would get used to the dull pain caused by his missing alpha. He has not exactly been successful, which is why he is hiding in his room. The last time he went to visit the artisans, he was so out of it that they threatened to go to new York to find Haytham themselves, never mind that none of them have ever met him.

Now that he’s thinking about it, Haytham probably just approached the first person he met at the Homestead, introduced himself and asked for him. They probably tripped over themselves in their haste to show him where he was. Traitors.

"I can’t believe you made me come to this godforsaken place. When we had this conversation, I thought I had been clear enough even for your thick skull, but obviously I overestimated you. You were to meet me in New York about two weeks ago."

Haytham can’t possibly be referring to his one-sided declaration aboard the Aquila, can he ? Even he would understand that hiding an attack on Connor’s village just to score a point against Washington is an unforgivable offense.

"I can’t believe you came to this godforsaken place. The last time we saw each other, I told you that I would kill you if I ever saw you again. Did you think I was kidding ?" As he’s talking, Connor’s mind is trying to think of everything : Achilles should be nearby, Haytham could try to hurt him or the residents. Connor always has his hidden blade on him, but his sword is standing right by Haytham, on the other side of the room. Haytham probably came armed and ready for a fight. He’s the one closer to the door; Connor can’t leave without getting too close. The room is small, doing battle here would be unpractical.

His thoughts are interrupted by Haytham. "I did not come here to kill you, foolish boy. If this was my goal, I would have come while you were sleeping. You’re far more honest that way. No omega would be disturbed in his sleep by the presence of his alpha. I could slide a blade into your chest, and you wouldn’t twitch until you felt the cold of the steel on your skin."

Connor grows cold. He could never do something like this to Haytham, but this is but another thing they do not share.

Haytham rolls his eyes. "Oh for God’s sake, stop overreacting ! I just said I’m not here to kill you, and I can’t help but notice you’re not coming at me with your blade unsheathed. I came here in good fate, through the front door, just like any other guest."

"If you’re not here to remove the thorn in your side, then why are you here ? You can’t expect me to believe you just want the pleasure of my company. Even if this was the case, I said I don’t want anything to do with someone who knew my village was to be attacked and chose not to say anything just to destroy an alliance."

"Blaming me for an attack I did not order and could not have stopped is irrational. If I had told you, what were you going to do, go and convince Washington to revoke his orders ? That would have gone well. Everything would have ended up exactly the same, with you on the battlefield, fighting. The only one you have to blame is yourself for being blind enough to trust Washington in the first place !"

The only reason Connor has not punched Haytham in the face yet is the bond. He’s so angry he feels like he could lose control at any second, and yet, at the same time, his bondmate’s company soothes the aches inside of him. This leaves Connor in a state of indecision, torn between action and inaction.

Haytham takes his silence as a sign to continue. "You make starting arguments too easy. This was not why I came here either. I’m here in the middle of nowhere to propose another truce, which will hopefully turn out better than our last one."

Whatever Connor was expecting, this was not it. His eloquent "What" exposes this.

Haytham is not impressed. "I see I’ll have to use small words. Listen well. We’re bonded. Not seeing each other is bad for us. We continuing to fight against each other stops us from meeting as often as we should. Thus, we should stop fighting against each other. Was that simple enough for you ? "

"I understood just fine, thank you. I just don’t see how this is my business, seeing as you’re the one who betrays and uses me at every turn."

"I’m the one offering the truce. You don’t have to do anything, just accept it."

Connor is still astonished. He should say no, tell the man to go to Hell. He should insist that what he did can’t be forgiven.

Connor is but a man, one who misses his bondmate everyday. Maybe this time will be the one.

"If you do anything, and I do mean anything, that I can interpret as a breach to this truce, this will be the last time you see me."

"Glad we’re in agreement. Now we can move on to better things."

This means coming closer faster than he should be able to, pushing Connor against the wall and kissing him deeply. Connor lets himself enjoy the feeling of his mate touching him for a while, before he remembers that Achilles is somewhere inside these walls. Connor is not having sex with Haytham somewhere Achilles could hear. It takes all of his will, the omega part of him just wanting to let Haytham do whatever he wants after such a long absence, but he manages to push Haytham away.

"No. Achilles could walk on us at any moment."

"No he can’t. I knocked him out on my way to your room."

"…You did not."

"Take what you get. I could have killed him." He’s deadly serious.

"That would have been the shortest-lived truce in history."

"Which is why I did not kill the old man." Apparently satisfied with his explanations, Haytham goes back to kissing him. Connor understands that raising objections now will be more than futile, and lets him. Later, he’ll have to make him comprehend that attacking Connor’s family is something that will be avenged, but now is not the time, not when all he can feel are Haytham’s hands under his shirt, stroking his chest. Haytham stops kissing him and immediately finds the same spot on the side of his neck he bit before, confirming what Connor already knew : Haytham is obsessed with marking him there. He can’t stop the little moan he makes when Haytham pierces the skin. This should not be pleasant, yet his hand is tangling in his father’s hair, holding him there.

He feels something cold against his skin, then air over his chest. Haytham whispers in his ear : "I told you you would not even react". Connor realizes that Haytham used his hidden blade to cut off his shirt. He’s right. Connor, trained assassin that he is, did not acknowledge a blade that what drawn and used against him. The knowledge is both terrifying and exciting. Haytham notices his reaction and laughs softly, right against his ear. The blade moves again, and Connor’s pants are in shambles on the ground, Connor’s skin still intact. Haytham expertly removes Connor’s own hidden blades, leaving him completely naked against the wall of his room, exposed to Haytham’s gaze. Haytham himself is still covered, and not in a hurry to undress, it seems. "Let’s get you to bed."

The moment Connor lies on his bed, Haytham straddles him, leaving him no room to move, and quickly ties his hands to the bedpost. He came prepared. Connor would be panicking if everything in him did not insist that he is perfectly safe ; after all, his alpha is right there to take care of him. He decides to wait and see.

He doesn’t have to wait long. Now that he’s secured, Haytham is removing his clothes, in slow movements obviously meant to tease. Hat, cape, coat, shirt, boots, pants and undergarments are discarded one after another in front of Connor, unable to accelerate the process.

Satisfied with his work, Haytham sets out to discover every inch of Connor’s body. Their previous encounters were frenzied, both of them pushed by the bond. Now that they’re in agreement, in a quiet environment, Haytham is going to take his time.

He can’t help but notice that they are similar in many ways : the shape and look of the face, the large hands with blunt fingers, the muscular body. This is definitively not unattractive to Haytham. He can also see Ziio in the shade of the skin, the color of the hair, the grace when he moves sometimes, unthinkingly.

That is all his for the taking, and Haytham has always been so bad at resisting temptation. He goes after what he wants, whenever he wants it.

Connor is slowly losing the control he so wanted to keep. He’s unused to letting his partners do whatever they want this way. Feeling a hand over his side, a mouth kissing his collarbone or fingers caressing his inner thighs without being able to reciprocate forces his own fingers to dig into his palms, leaving bloody crescents. Haytham reacts to the smell of blood, opening his hands and licking the small wounds. "You shouldn’t harm yourself so. Let me take care of that." He marks his words by biting Connor’s ear. Between the bite on his neck, the scratches left all over his skin and the ropes tying his wrists, Connor is going to be covered in marks by the time he leaves his bed, and finds that he doesn’t really mind.

Haytham has been avoiding Connor’s erection, but he can see that the boy can’t take much more. He’ll have to move on. His fingers slowly trace the length of it, making Connor moans. He takes him in hand, a loose, unsatisfying hold that makes Connor trash and beg for more. He kisses the top, tongues the tip, caresses with his lips the whole of it, always teasing.

Connor could almost thank Haytham when the first finger finally enters him. He missed this, and if he’s honest with himself, has wanted it for weeks now. Haytham takes his time preparing him, probably only to annoy him. He then adds the second and third fingers in quick succession, pushing Connor to his limit, then lazily slides in and out of him like he has all the time in the world. Connor has lost all shame, wanting more and not getting it, begging for it without restraint, which was obviously Haytham’s goal.

Seeing that his victory is complete, Haytham removes his fingers. Connor tries not to tense in anticipation. Having Haytham back inside of him, after all this time, is almost enough to make him come, but not quite. Surprising no one, Haytham starts with quick, shallow thrusts that only tease Connor. He gets more forceful when Connor rides every push, trying to get what he needs.

It’s not that long before Connor is plastered against the bed, all of Haytham’s strength pushing him down every time. His legs are wrapped against Haytham’s hips. He knows that the knot is coming, and he wants it.

There it is, slowly pushing inside of Connor, exciting him further. Connor pushes against it, needing it deeper inside of him. Haytham grips his shoulders, holds him in place, and strokes Connor’s cock one, two, three times before he comes, exhausted. Haytham only follows when it starts getting too much for Connor, who’s whimpering half in pain and half in pleasure under the assault.

After, Haytham unties Connor, whose wrists are bruised and painful but Connor could not care less, wraps his arms around him and holds him until he falls asleep.

Fill Part 8

[(Anonymous)]

Obviously, this fic cheerfully ignores all dates stated in the game. I forgot to verify them when I was planning the story, and I just realized how screwed the timeline is. So, for convenience’s sake, Sequence 11 will start a few months after Part 7. Sorry. At least Achilles is not dying yet. I like Achilles a lot. It just doesn’t show.

____________

The thundering noise of a door being open with too much force and hitting the wall wakes Connor. His body reacts instinctively. He’s out of the bed before he can think about it, trying to push any lingering confusion away.

His mind catches up to his body way too late. This is no enemy here. Only Achilles, standing in the doorway. Achilles, who probably woke up disoriented until he remembered being attacked by the Grand Master of the Templar Order in his own home. Achilles, who had no idea how much time had passed, who rushed to Connor’s side to see if he was unarmed. Achilles, whose eyes are slowly turning cold as he takes in the scene before him : Connor, still naked and bruised, but not beaten or violated, the unmade and stained bed, the absence of any sign of fighting and Haytham’s corpse nowhere to be seen.

Connor can’t defend himself. He stills, getting tenser by the second, awaiting judgment.

Achilles opens his mouth, stops himself, tries again to no avail. It’s obvious he’s doing everything he can to control his temper. "Well, Connor, you’ve made your choice. I hope you’re happy with it." He leaves as abruptly as he started to speak, closing the door behind him.

Connor thinks he might have preferred a screaming match, except there would have been no match, only Achilles screaming by himself because how could he talk back to Achilles about this ? He can’t demand of Achilles to accept Haytham, that would be too much to ask.

Through the door, he can barely hear Achilles’ mumblings fading : "in my own manor…"

______________

After this, everything settles into a strange, uncomfortable status quo. Connor spends as much time as he can away on missions, trying to further the Assassins’ goals. He scouts in New York. He talks to his contacts in Boston. He travels to the Frontier. He navigates the Aquila. He makes sure he’s always busy. That way, he doesn’t have to go back to the manor, to try to avoid Achilles, to wonder if he should just stop coming here altogether. He feels better when he’s achieving things that would make Achilles proud, can tell himself he’s doing what is right and imagine the approval on his mentor’s face instead of having to confront the disgust that would mar it should they meet.

The habitants of the Homestead think he leaves to be with his new lover. They know that Achilles disapproves, but they think he’s being overprotective, the way a father protects his young virgin daughter for whom nobody can be good enough. He’s already been cornered by Ellen who told him that "eloping was a terrible idea, really, love is a fickle mistress, you can’t let someone you care about screw up your life the way I did, you’ve got so much here and we all care about you". He’s touched, he really is, but she has no idea what she’s talking about, none of them do, and he’s not going to tell them what is really going on for as long as he can get away with it. It’s better if he stays away.

There’s also the fact that he would probably be driven out of his mind if he eloped with Haytham. Their arrangement is only slightly less awkward than the one he has with Achilles. They meet from time to time, more by accident than by actual design, as Connor is everywhere, and make sure to take breaks from their respective objectives to spend some time together. For all the talks about a truce, they mostly stay out of each other’s way. Connor can’t make himself reveal anything that would help the templars, and Haytham only does so when his own goals would be furthered by said reveal. The only progress they have made is that they actually try to be civil to each other, which is quite difficult for Connor because seeing his father trying to curb his acerbic tongue and be nice to him is hilarious. He’s terrible at it, which is only made funnier by the fact that Haytham can be as sweet as honey if he wants to seduce someone, he just can’t manage to be anyone but himself around Connor.

Haytham is always so careful about them not being seen together by his supporters, because while Connor’s allies have no idea who Haytham is, the templars know too well that Connor is an assassin. Some of them might think that Haytham is compromised, that he chose to go back to the assassins. After all, who can trust a traitor ? Should Haytham be removed, the inner wars to choose his replacements might be bloodier than their currents activities. Thus, the few British soldiers unfortunate enough to sense their bond were promptly disposed of by Haytham because they represented too much of a potential risk. Trust their bond to erase life instead of creating it.

In a way, the distance and the hiding make Connor’s life easier. He knows well enough that he’ll never convince Haytham to move against Lee. His father wouldn’t approve of him trying to breach Fort George to get to him. Luckily for Connor, they’re not close enough for his plan to be discovered. He doesn’t have to explain himself to his alpha. As soon as he can get in touch with Lafayette and confirm that the Comte de Grasse is giving them his support, he’ll be able to proceed. Lee will get what he deserves.

Fill Part 9

[(Anonymous)]

Even as Fort George crumbles around him, Connor continues. He’s never been this close to killing Charles Lee. The fort’s defenses are destroyed. He’s gravely wounded, but if he can just find him and take him by surprise, it could be the end. He could put his revenge behind, knowing his mother has been avenged. The world would be rid of this menace.

He doesn’t know where he’s going. He’s hoping blind luck will lead him where he needs to be.

He’s the one who is taken by surprise when he hears his father’s voice answering his challenge. He can only muster a defense after a few seconds, after he has processed the shock and given place to the fighting instincts ingrained inside of him.

Even when he’s losing, Haytham never abandons his confidence. "Come now, you cannot hope to match me, Connor. For all your skills, you’re still but a boy – with so much left to learn." Connor gets that his father does not want to kill him. If he had wanted to, he could have run a blade through him by now, or shot him the moment he saw Connor. This ambush is only him making a point : he’ll always be a step ahead of Connor.

Connor is very tired of being played with. He’ll have Lee now. He’s the one who draws a blade first, who transpierce Haytham’s arm.

"Give me Lee !"

"Impossible. He is the promise of a better future. The sheep need a shepherd."

"He’s been dismissed and censured. He can do nothing for you now." I could, if you would let me.

"A temporary setback. He will be restored." This is the moment where Haytham becomes serious. At last. He finally draws his sword.

He knew Haytham was skilled, but now he can feel how much more experienced than him his father is. All his attacks are blocked. He has to use his surrounding to gain an advantage, which is difficult when he feels this unstable and weak. He has lost too much blood and has to fight the bond at every swing of his weapon.

As they trade blows, Haytham still tries to convince him of the justness of his cause. He suspects Haytham would rather spare him, but he can’t be sure. He doesn’t want to kill Haytham, but he is past the point where he won’t do it if necessary. It might hurt him more than anything before, but if this is the price he has to pay to erase Charles Lee from this world, so be it. But before that, he has to give him a way out. "Surrender and I will spare you."

His offer is rejected. More, he’s not in a position to make it. As Haytham’s hands circle his throat, Connor knows he has to react quickly. With the last of his strength, he pushes up and shoves his hidden blade into Haytham’s shoulder. Haytham cries out and let go of Connor. Connor acts as fast as he can. He grabs a rock nearby, suited to his purpose, wraps his hand around it and hits Haytham on the head, right where Achilles told him it would cause unconsciousness. Haytham drops to the ground.

Connor stares at his father’s limp body standing before him. He could kill him now, put this behind him. It might even be a kindness to Haytham.

He won’t. Connor balks at the idea of killing someone this defenseless, let alone his bondmate. Now that the fight is done, he can start thinking instead of reacting, driven by his hatred of Lee. For all he knows, this will drive him mad, which would help no one.

He could leave him here for Lee to find. Lee must have known that Haytham was here. He was the one Haytham protected, after all.

It his him. This is an unprecedented opportunity. Charles Lee will be expecting Haytham back. Connor never takes prisoners after all : he kills those too dangerous to live, or he frees those too weak to oppose him. Haytham definitively isn’t the latter. If Haytham doesn’t come back, he be presumed dead, and Charles Lee will have to come out of hiding, if only to assume the mantle of the new Grand Master of the Templar Order. It’s perfect : it removes his alpha from templar influences and gets his enemy to show up.

Connor takes the hat off his father’s head, and impale it to the ground with his father’s sword. Templars, even the slowest, should be able to decipher such a message. Let them think he did not even leave Lee a body to mourn. That is, if the hat survives the destruction around them, flames and explosions everywhere. Not finding a body in this hell won’t be strange.

Now that his path is chosen, he has to rejoin Lafayette and Stephane underground. If he manages to get both Haytham and himself there, he’ll have some explaining to do.

Fill Part 10

[(Anonymous)]

Another thing I could never quite find out was how much time a trip between the cities and the Homestead would take. Let’s say it takes a few hours by ship. If anyone actually knows, tell me, I’m curious. The timeline is already completely screwed up, so whatever.

________

"He’ll be fine. Whoever got him did a lot of damage, but if he rests and doesn’t do anything to worsen his injuries, he should be completely healed in a few weaks."

Connor feels like he can breathe for the first time in hours. Normally, Haytham should have been awake by now. In fact, he should have woken up during the trip on the Aquila, back to the Homestead. He’ll never know, but he was tied up in Connor’s cabin for the duration. Connor couldn’t risk a fight on the ship.

Doctor Lyle says that Haytham, like Connor, is heavily wounded, and that his body is recuperating. His life isn’t in danger. He’ll wake up when he can. That’s all Connor needs to know for now. He has already tolerated the care the doctor forced on him; he can safely ignore the orders to go to his own bed and sleep until next week. He’s not leaving Haytham unsupervised in the inn. He’ll stay right here until he wakes up, to try to contain the storm that is certainly coming.

Corrine is frowning at him. "It’s useless for you to stay here. I’ll get someone to warn you when he wakes. Leave."

Connor stares right back at her. "No." He can’t explain, so he won’t. The staring contest continues. Corrine loses. "Fine. Don’t blame me when you drop dead." As he’s much more likely to do so if he leaves to sleep, he disregards this. She exits. Connor goes right back to watching and waiting.

__________

By the time Haytham wakes, Connor himself is feeling the exhaustion and pain in every part of his body. He really hopes Stephane will arrive soon with the New York assassin he’ll have gotten in contact with. The recruits are as deadly as they’ll ever be by now, and Connor can’t let Haytham loose near his people without adequate supervision, but leaving the cities without protectors would be asking for the templars to regain their territories. One from Boston and one from New York should do. With the man as wounded as he is, they should be a strong enough deterrent. When they get here, Connor will rest.

That will only happen if Stephane can get either one of the assassins to show up. To say that Lafayette and he were surprised by the bond would quite the understatement. The recruits have been trained to oppose the templars. Learning that their mentor wanted the Grand Master protected and moved to his stronghold was difficult to digest, but not impossible. Unlike Connor himself, Stephane does not know much about Haytham, or has reason to hate him personally. He can put his hatred of the templars aside to protect his mentor’s bondmate. Connor hopes one of the others will be able to do the same.

But right now, he has to deal with Haytham. "Don’t move. Your wounds have been taken care of, but it will take several weeks before you’re well enough. Until them, you’re staying here."

"Should I know where "here" is ? I don’t think I’ve ever visited this particular third-rate establishment before."
Connor frowns. "This is the Homestead’s inn. If I were you, I wouldn’t insult this place. The owners will make your life difficult. Stay here, or you’ll be brought back by force and tied up." Which would have to be explained to the residents, but since he’s hiding Haytham here, he guess he’ll have to tell them the truth someday.

"You honestly think you’ll be able to drag me back if I decide to leave ? I would have thought even you would know better by now. You’re not exactly healthy yourself."

Connor grins. "You’re right, which is why I won’t be the one watching over you most of the time. The other assassins will." As far as he knows, the templars have no idea that there are others beside him and Achilles. The surprise Haytham suppress a second too late confirms his theory. Now, they only have to come.

"Why not kill me and be done with it ? It would be rather more efficient."

"My reasons are not yours to know." If Haytham hasn’t realized just how heavily the bond weighs on Connor, he’s not the one who will enlighten him.

The door opens violently, letting Deborah and Stephane enter. Revealing their appearances to Haytham is a calculated risk, one Connor hopes he won’t regret. The identities of the others will not be jeopardized. The exact number of their allies should stay unknown. Let Haytham think they are building an army, a force strong enough to openly oppose the templars.

They start analyzing the situation as soon as they can: Connor’s state, Haytham’s state, the exits, the potential weapons. Deborah shares a look with Stephane, then grabs Connor’s arm gently to pull him from his chair. She thinks he needs his rest, preferable as far as possible from potential danger. She’s right. He follows her lead.

Stephane lies against the wall, never taking his eyes off Haytham. He looks relaxed, but every muscle is tense, ready to leap if needed. He will settle down after a few hours, but right now there are too many unknowns. He’ll be damned if he fails his mentor when he let them in such a personal part of his life.

__________

"What were you thinking ! Leading a templar here, surrounded by people who have no idea there’s a wolf in their midst ! While you’re in no condition to protect them !"

Someday, Connor is going to introduce Deborah to Achilles. Surely they will get along great. "You’re here, aren’t you ? I trust this will be sufficient protection."

"But why here ? If you really wanted to spare your bondmate, you could have just left him where he was for the templars to find, or hide him in a city, where he could have blended in without endangering innocents."

Connor takes a deep breath. "It’s a chance I never thought I’d had. Here, he is completely cut off from the Order. He’ll be stuck here until he’s able to leave. They will think him dead ; the Order will move on. Maybe I can convince him to do so too."

Deborah’s eyes soften. "Oh. You really think you have a chance ? From what we know, he betrayed us before. "

"I have to try."

She sighs. "Then good luck to you. In the meantime, you need to sleep. Stephane and I will take care of everything. Rest."

"Thank you. I will."

Fill Part 11

[(Anonymous)]

Hahahaha, this is so late it’s not even funny. Sorry everyone. Still, Happy New Year !

_____________

Haytham is taken by surprise when the door to his room opens. He’s not the only one; though he tries to suppress it, the one they call Stephane is startled too. It’s not the time for a meal, or the moment for the female assassin to replace her ally. In the few days he’s been here, he hasn’t seen anyone but the lady tending the inn or the assassins. He supposes he should be flattered that Connor thinks him so dangerous that contacts with the residents should be restricted. He wonders what they think of the situation. The last time he visited, they knew his name and had seemed more than happy to see him.

Achilles enters. Haytham watches in amusement as Stephane tries to find the right way to react to such an unusual presence. Achilles is the oldest assassin on the continent, a figure the recruits probably idealize but haven’t met very often.

"Mentor , it is an-

"Stop talking and leave, young man. I need to speak to your charge. In private."

"Far from me the idea that you are weak, but this man is a real danger. I couldn't, in good conscience, abandon my duties."

"I believe can more than handle him when he's in this state. More importantly, did I say anything that made you think you have a choice in the matter ? I lead this order, and you'll obey or suffer the consequences."

Stephane hesitates, then exits through the door as fast as he can manage. It is obvious that he's rushing to Connor' side, to inform him of this unforeseen development.

"What a grand display of leadership, Achilles. The templars will quake in fear when news of your revival reach them." When Achilles was raising just one assassin, the Order judged that going against him would be too much of a hassle. If he’s trying to establish a branch of the Assassin Order on the new continent, they can’t let this stand, and Achilles must know it. There will be war, or there would be if the templars had time and energy to spare. It will have to wait until Charles’ grip on power is more stable.

"While we both know this won't be the case, maybe it should be." A challenge. Surprising. Achilles is staring at him, but after those daring words he stays unnervingly silent.

Haytham hisses. "Say whatever moralizing reprimands you're here for and leave. If I have to stay here, I would prefer to do it without having to tolerate you on top of everything else. Or are you here to try your hand at killing me ? I wouldn’t suggest it; even wounded I could easily take you." Haytham’s not armed, but he’ll be damned if he allows himself to be eliminated by this crumbling old man. He would prefer not to have to slay Achilles; he’d be forfeiting his life to the remaining assassins. One can only forgive so much.

"For now, I am not here to put an end to your life, templar." Each word he lets out seems to hurt him more deeply than any weapon could. "The boy would be the one to suffer. He doesn’t deserve it, even if he is an idiot. Surely he didn’t really expect me to remain ignorant of your presence here. Connor is even more of a fool than I thought possible if he thought he could hide you here, in my home, without me noticing."

"On this, we agree, though I could not say without doubt which of us is more at fault. If I had been the one in charge of him, I would have trained this naivety away by now."

"If you had, none of us would be caught in this mess right now, but here we are. My own apprentice, bonded to you. Which bring me to the reason of my visit. I can’t do anything to keep him away from you. I tried, and I was shown how futile it was. I won’t kill you, or arrange an assassination, thought I know some who would only be too happy to take care of it. What I can do, and will do myself if necessary, is kill him."

Haytham stops breathing for a second, then breathlessness is replaced by laughter. "Really ? You think you can make me believe you would kill your only student and heir ? You, old man ? Do you believe me so gullible ?"

Achilles’ eyes harden. "It is because he is my student and heir that I will kill him. He’s the one who formed the recruits, as you surely guessed. Should he join your side, will he take them with him, along with our secrets and knowledge ? This can’t be permitted."

"Everything is permitted. I would know. Do you have so little faith in your student ? Why do you reveal your intentions to me ? I could share them with him and use them against you." Achilles is old but not senile. He can’t have ignored this possibility.

The snort Achilles emits is bitter. "The boy wouldn’t believe you over me, not for a while still. He’ll think you’re trying to turn him against me, just like you did with Washington. Nothing to help whatever designs you have on him. As for telling you, well, you’ll be able to think about the consequences of your actions."

Achilles is resolute. Haytham is sure of it. Objectively, he almost admire the brilliance and the simplicity of the plan: removing Connor protects the assassins and has unpredictable consequences on Haytham, thus disturbing the templars. Connor would never think to defend himself against Achilles, not until it’s too late.

Subjectively, an alpha just declared he’d assassinate his omega whenever he deemed it right. Such a challenge can’t stay unanswered. The mood has shifted in the room, veiled hostility now uncovered. Maybe he can smother Achilles with his pillow. It’s worth a try. He’s about to try it when Connor enters the room, closely followed by Stephane and a worried Corrine. Haytham restrains all thoughts of violence firmly.

Connor is frowning, trying to understand the situation but finding no clue. "What is happening here ?"

"Nothing for you to worry about, Connor. What you should be worried about is the fact that you hid him here without my knowledge or permission. As you can see that he’s perfectly fine, you and I need to talk." Connor cringes, but follows his retreating mentor out of the room, all thoughts of the reason for Achilles’ visit forgotten in front of the impending scolding. Stephane takes back his place along the wall, but Haytham knows he won’t be able to contain his curiosity. Better put a stop to it now. "If you think asking me for information will give you anything remotely close to relevant, you’re not ready to be called a master assassin yet. It would be preferable for you to stay silent for now." Stephane glares, but complies. He’ll probably try later, you don’t become an assassin without a respectable stubborn streak, but for now Haytham has the silence needed to consider his next move.

Fill Part 12

[(Anonymous)]

Everyone still reading this is my hero. I love you.

Keep in mind that this is set a long time ago, and that alpha/omegas worlds are never the most equalitarian ones.

I want to write Connor. Haytham, go away.
____________

"So... How did you two met ? "

Really. Really. He’s been stuck here for a week, he has no idea how long he’ll stay there, and now he has to deal with this: an undignified interrogation by the people Connor probably consider family. To make this situation even more pleasant, the female assassin is supervising the visit. She’s good; she can almost keep the smile off her face. If Haytham had been at her place, he’d be laughing at her openly and making the situation worse.

Might as well have some fun. "We were in Boston. He was accosted by a… rather forceful alpha. You know how it is, everyone is too busy to notice there’s something wrong when things deteriorate for an omega." Even if he couldn’t tell from scent, he would be able to tell from the reactions alone which ones are omegas and which ones are alphas.

"Really ? I find that hard to believe. Connor can take care of himself." The hunter, he thinks her name is Myriam, is not convinced, and she’s not the only one.

"I’m sure he could have, but I didn’t know that then. That alpha was being untoward. He had to be taught a lesson." Connor would be livid if he could see the looks of approbation on their faces. Surely his friends are not to be toyed with, but he’s not here to stop Haytham. "He has a kind soul, our Connor. He didn’t want to hurt an idiot who had no idea who he was accosting." This they have no problem believing.

Deborah is faltering, obviously torn between setting everyone straight and protecting Connor’s secrets. Sadly for her, Haytham has no such compulsions.

"It’s nice to know that Connor has someone decent to take care of him." He must no react to what… Prudence is saying. "He’s very private. As far as we know, he never had anyone special. Achilles keeps him so busy, he’s always doing who knows what far away from here. If only he had an omega figure in his life, he might have turned out differently. With only Achilles has a parenting figure, it’s no wonder poor Connor has no idea how to deal with an alpha. Nobody taught him."

He’ll admit it: he doesn’t know much about Connor’s childhood. This could be interesting. "He did not tell me much, but I was under the impression that Connor had been raised by his clan following his mother’s death. Wouldn’t there be a few omegas to help him along ?"

She blinks, but gets back on her feet quickly. "Maybe, but his omega parent would have been more suited to the role."

Haytham snorts. "If he had had one."

He gets surprised stares before he realize what he just said. Ziio and he were both alphas. To him, it’s evident that Connor did not have an omega parent to look up to. The residents wouldn’t have thought so. Most alphas won’t choose another alpha as a partner. They would have assumed that at least one of Connor’s genitors was an omega.

"If Connor told you anything about his father, you two must be closer than we thought." He can feel Deborah glaring at him. She can’t hide her distress at the idea. So even the assassins don’t know he is Connor’s father. If he can juggle all those lies and omissions, maybe Connor inherited more from him than it appears. Ziio had been a very straightforward woman, after all. Such deceptions would have looked cowardly to her, and maybe they are. For a few moments, he plays with the idea of telling them the truth, but dismisses it. Nothing good would come out of it.

He observes the motley crew surrounding him. Deborah is troubled, but the other faces show relief and interest. They’re not jealous, or worried about his hold on Connor. These people genuinely care about his son. They have no discernible link, no ideology bonded them to him or to each others, and yet they all live peacefully here, in Davenport’s domain. Connor someone managed to get the loyalty of so many men and women, but he doesn’t use it for his cause. If he knew how to use his charisma, he could do so much more for the Brotherhood. Some of them could have made fine assassins, but he had no reason to believe that they are. They don’t move the way Deborah and Stephane do. They’re not guarded against him. In fact, they have no idea who he is. As cliché as it sounds, they just want Connor to be happy.

He had that for a short while, when he was building the Order on this side of the ocean. He almost forgot that he used to consider Thomas, John and the others friends, not only collaborators. When was the last time he just spend time with them, no business involved, just fine wine and pleasant conversation ? He can’t remember. It’s too late now, they’re almost all dead, killed by Connor, and he didn’t even mourn them. He doesn’t think he cares.

He is stopped from getting even more maudlin by someone he doesn’t know. Yet. "So, Connor’s father ? Who was he ?"

The possibilities are endless. What tales he could spin about himself…"On this matter, I would respect his desire for privacy." Who know when it would come back to haunt him.

"What are you all doing here ! Leave the man to his rest ! Go, now !" The owner has spotted the invasion of her domain, and swiftly throws everyone out, to their flagrant regrets. They’ll be back. Deborah settles back into her role, her eyes never leaving him. She has questions. Haytham assumes all the assassins do. If Connor doesn’t tell them something, anything, to satisfy them, it will end up causing him trouble.

No matter. It doesn’t concern him.

Fill Part 13

[(Anonymous)]

His wounds take too long to heal. From what he has been told by the assassins visiting him, the templars are still looking for Haytham everywhere, without success. Lee is leading the search himself. It takes all his self-control not to leave, wounds be damned, now that his sworn enemy is out of hiding. Even while rage and desire for revenge obstruct his thoughts, he knows this would be foolish, considering his health, and so he waits. And waits. His time will come.

____________________

They won’t be able to retain him for much longer, and they know it. Haytham has caught Stephane and Deborah talking about bringing reinforcements.

If they’re foolish enough to share information when they think he’s sleeping, they only have themselves to blame.

So, in a few days at most, he’ll be well enough to leave. He admits it; as bored as he had been, he has tried to avoid thinking what he will do once he has departed. He doesn’t know as much as he needs to about the state of things regarding the Order. He can speculate, but he doesn’t know, and for him that is unusual enough. If he was the one in charge and searching for a key member of their association, he’d assume said member had been killed by the enemy by now. The templars have more important things to worry about than fools who can’t rescue themselves from children and amateurs.

He’s not the one in charge; in all probabilities, Charles is. Haytham honestly believes Charles can be the leader the country needs, but that doesn’t make him flawless, far from it. If only he could restrain that temper and get a better grip on his emotions. Maybe Haytham should have put more effort into finding him a suitable alpha to rein him in.

He didn’t, and now he can imagine how well Charles took his disappearance and possible death. He’s probably moving heaven and earth to find him. Such a waste of resources for a futile search when he should be doing everything he can to solidify his claim on the leadership of the Order and ensure a smooth transition of power. How strange to think that Charles is so affected by him, probably more so than his own bondmate will ever be.

His. Such a strange way to think about Connor. He can’t deny it; nothing was ever his the way his bondmate is. Tied to him by blood and by whatever it is that links alphas and omegas: those are claims universally acknowledged and respected. Connor’s settlers have taken him in stride. Connor’s allies aren’t exactly happy with the development, but they don’t oppose it, because doing so is counterproductive and ultimately hopeless. The only ones who struggle with it are Connor and he. They can’t help but push against each others, to try to find and define boundaries. It doesn’t work. They don’t work, not the way they instinctively should.

There is someone else who doesn’t accept them. He almost forgot about Achilles. There is another thing Haytham didn’t want to think about. Only Haytham’s own allies and friends might be as repulsed by the match as the crumbling old man. He knows this, and yet, he had wanted Connor to join him, to renounce his ideals and embrace the templars’. His recovering body is the proof of how well that worked.

With his comprehension of the situation, what does he do ? He can’t stay here. He has to leave, as soon as possible. Charles needs his help. Does he abandon Connor to his senseless crusade against the Order and his de facto leader ? Can he discard him the way he pushed Ziio aside, because she was something he wanted but not something he could afford to keep, something that had no place in his perfect vision of the future ?

Haytham can spend hours being bored out of his mind, but every time he really tries to think, he gets interrupted. Now, it’s another child, one he doesn’t recognize and who apparently doesn’t like him much, if the look of hatred being thrown his way can be believed. It’s quickly replaced by a complicated expression, the man looking sheepish, nervous, angry and scared. The boy grabs Stephane’s shoulder and tries to pull him in a more private conversation, but there’s only so much that can be done if they want to keep their eyes on him. He tries to tone down his voice, but he’s too emotional for it and as the conversation progresses, Haytham figures out what has happened. His funeral has been announced. The assassins know when and where it will be. Apparently, the apprentice came to share this with Connor without giving it more thought.

Maybe this is the modus operandi for this generation of assassins: act before you think. His father would be devastated.

Now, his son cannot be found anywhere in the homestead. Even a simpleton could tell that he has gone to confront Lee.

Well, that answers his questions about his status in the Order.

Now, what to do about it.

Author!Anon here.

[(Anonymous)]

So, that. fucking. fic. is. kicking. my. ass.

Since I'll try to go back to it seriously, if anyone's still watching this, would you prefer small parts like before or do you want to wait until I'm done with it ?

Fill - End

[(Anonymous)]

At this point, my biggest hope is that no one will see this, but that this was left unfinished just bothered me endlessly. Here’s an ending. I have so many mixed feelings about it.

____________

He's here. Right in front of him. Charles Lee, the murderer of his mother and the new leader of the Templars.

If he was anyone else, Connor might let himself be moved by the too obvious grief the man displays at the idea of his father's death, but this is Lee. He deserves everything he feels right now and more. He's never been this open or this vulnerable before. This is his chance.

Maybe a frontal attack wasn’t the best move. He’s quickly arrested by the guards and brought to Lee. He can’t fight back without endangering the civilians surrounding him, but submitting in front of Lee of all people leaves a bitter taste in his mouth.

The man is devastated. His first words to the presumed murderer of his… leader? friend? whoever Haytham was to Lee betray how close they were, how much Lee cared. That affection obviously was returned, Haytham’s last act having been protecting Lee. How like Haytham to make sure Connor’s plan be thwarted even if everything goes wrong for him. It’s not like he ever showed such attention to Connor, who’s not envious. At all.

Even when threatening Connor’s loved ones and his life, one can hear how affected Lee is. Maybe too affected. Connor knows quite well how omegas are judged by the alphas around them. Such a display of irrationality will only urge his fellow Templars to overthrow him. He’ll be considered too weak, too emotive. Postponing his death for personal reasons and having him guarded only by a few guards until an undefined moment in the future doesn’t exactly demonstrate well-planned leadership and control.

Not his business. It only makes escape easier.

Finding more clues about Lee’s current location is child’s play with so many of his soldiers spread around, as if they’d been left there for him to find. They lead him to the ship. Now, he only has to wait two days until Lee comes out of hiding once again. The chase goes on.

At least he can console himself with the knowledge that his long-term plan went off without a hitch. With Lee out of hiding and Haytham safely tucked away at the Homestead, things are going his way.

_______

He tried to reach Charles before the end of his own funeral, and how strange witnessing this would have been, but he left the Homestead quite a bit after Connor and had to take care not to be discovered, and thus arrived too late. All his allies have already departed, but Haytham didn’t get where he is today by letting circumstances stop him. He is, or, to be exact, he was the leader of the Order, and he knows Charles better than anyone. It takes him a few hours, but he finds Charles holed up in one of the lesser known outposts of the Order, a small isolated house in the northern part of New York, nursing a bottle of substandard rum.

He’s predictably wrecked. Poor Charles was always too attached to him.

“Charles.”

Charles turns his head in his direction, snorts, and goes back to his bottle.

“Charles !”

“Shut up ! Neither hallucinations nor the dead talk !”

“How glorious ! This must means I’m real and living, doesn’t it !”

Charles blinks. “Haytham ?”

“Yes, that would be me.”

“You’re dead.”

“Obviously not. You’ve been bested, my friend. The Assassin faked my death, but I assure you I’m alive and well.”

Charles rises, stumbles toward him and raises his hand to caress his cheek. His eyes widen as he feels the warmth beneath his fingers. “Haytham.”

Haytham ends up trying to soothe an overwhelmed omega back to his senses. He can’t work with Charles when he’s like this.

Somehow, what should be familiar feels strange, wrong. He’s had Charles’ frame nested against his so many times; done this, or something similar, so often it should be second nature, but today it leaves him uncomfortable. He has to fight the urge to push him off. He shouldn’t be the one here.

Damn it.

Once Charles is pacified, Haytham enquires about the state of the Order and of their plans. Charles assures him everything is going smoothly. The transition of power wasn’t as rough as Haytham feared. It was common knowledge that Haytham had been grooming Charles as his successor. The few that opposed him were apparently dealt with without too much trouble. Reassured, Haytham gently removes himself from the embrace and bids him farewell. Or tries to.

“You’re leaving ?”

“I must.” Why? “Everyone thinks me dead. My reappearance would only cause chaos and discord.” Nothing that couldn’t be controlled. “You can take care of things. I believe in you.” He does. “I’ll contact you again if,” If, not when. “I need to, but I must take care of the problem of the Assassin before he ruins us.“ You. Me.

“Haytham, be reasonable ! He almost killed you ! You were gone for weeks ! Stay. We’ll dispose of him together.”

“Them. The Brotherhood is growing. We have to find out just how wide their reach is before open warfare starts. We can’t afford to risk everything we worked for because of … my son.” my omega. Connor.

“There is no changing your mind, isn’t it ? Never has Master Kenway not go after something he wanted, consequences be damned.” So much bitterness in Charles’ voice; it startles Haytham. Charles takes a deep breath. “I know I can’t change your mind. I never could.” Haytham opens his mouth, but Charles cuts him off. “I won’t even try. Just. Please. Come back safely.”

Haytham rarely finds himself without words, but at the moment, they have all deserted him.

“Goodbye Charles.”

____________________

Next on the list : find Connor. He’ll be looking for Charles, and if Haytham himself isn’t at the head of the Templars, he has to make sure their leader will be safe. Their plans can’t unfold without a Templar at the head of the country.

That shouldn’t be too hard. He has to be in the city still. Haytham just has to follow the pull linking him to Connor, almost undetectable now but getting stronger by the moment as he closes on his son.

It has been a while since they’ve been alone, or at the very least without the interference of Connor’s posse. Despite spending what seemed like an eternity of days in Connor’s territory, they barely saw each others, both preferring solitude while tending to their wound and, quite frankly, neither of them eager to reveal more than necessary to bystanders. They were close enough for their purpose.

Ah, there he is, approaching in the distance. Bruised, battered and soaking wet, Connor has seen better days. It’s no surprise that a scowl mars his face, but then again, when doesn’t it? "So, I take it your search hasn’t being successful ?"

"I highly suggest you do not try me right now. What are you doing here ! If you dared hurt any of my friends, you won’t leave this place alive this time, I swear it."

"As if I even needed to attack those spectacularly inept novices. They probably didn’t even realize I left. But that’s not important right now. Did you manage to find Charles ? You probably did, even you should be able to discover a public funeral. How is he ?" It’s better that Connor doesn’t find out that they already met. Also, antagonizing Connor is always both easy and quite entertaining.

Connor snarls, but answers. He'd hate himself if he grasped just how often he obeys Haytham’s orders without question. "If you rely on him to carry your legacy, you’re out of luck. The man can barely control himself; he’ll never control your beloved Order. One would think he’s the one who just lost his alpha. I’ll be surprised if rumours of just how exactly he got his position aren’t flying everywhere by now."

"Of course there are. He’s an omega in a position of power. Most alphas find such a reason much more plausible than the idea that they’ve been bested by someone they consider inherently inferior. You yourself should know a thing or two about that." Connor doesn’t have to know that those rumours have been around for much longer, or that he was bedding Charles. Haytham isn’t stupid enough to promote someone just because he’s sleeping with them, and so those rumours are meaningless. Haytham only took Charles to bed after he had joined the Order; only after he was sure that Charles wasn’t planning to use him or felt coerced in any ways. He came willingly, and that was all there was to it. ”Where is he ?”

“I don’t know.”

“You don’t know ? After all those hours? How spectacularly inept. This is my fault; I allowed myself to expect something from you.”

“I know where he’ll be in two days.”

“So we have to wait until then. Oh well, it’s not like wasting my time all day will change much to my current routine. Let’s find accommodations.”

Connor doesn’t seem to respond well to his suggestion. Such a sensitive boy. “Just like this ? You appear, having escaped my custody, and expect me to roll over and do as you say ? Maybe you should have stayed in bed; your wits are still addled.”

“Do you have a better plan ? A concrete proposal to make ? God knows I can’t stop you from speaking your mind. You complain and grumble constantly, and yet, you abdicate. When did I force you to do something you didn’t want ? When did I take the ability to make your own choices from you ? Are you so weak-willed that I must take responsibility for your actions ? You can follow me; you can leave; you can attack me right here in the streets. But you can’t blame me for the path you choose.”

Silence is his answer, and after that, it’s to be expected. That is a lot more than he intended to say, and definitively a lot more than Connor needed to hear.

Haytham didn’t realise how Connor’s omnipresent blaming and disapproval weighted on him. This surprises him; Haytham prides himself on knowing his own heart and mind perfectly.

“How nice it must be for you. Not having to deal with those impulses wrecking havoc with your reasoning. Your mind is always your own.”

If only. “You’re an assassin. You decided to become one and so you became one. It is not exactly a typical path for an omega, but you chose it. So did others before you. There are omegas who chose to join the army, or to enter politics. None succeed when they start blaming their failure on their nature. They work with it. So should you.” Haytham can see Connor open his mouth. This will degenerate. Haytham doesn’t think he can handle it right now. “Also, if you need to know, impulses are hard to handle for us too.” These were all the weaknesses Haytham is going to expose tonight. Enough.

Connor chooses now to become perceptive. He understood his admission as what it was. The fight leaves him.

Silence falls between them. It isn’t awkward, just present.

It takes a few steps for Haytham to admit to himself he’s literally dragging Connor toward accommodations by holding his hand, and that Connor allowed it. It was one of those impulses they just fought about, the unconscious need to touch imposed by both their nature and their bond.

It is comforting to feel Connor so close. Their joined hands are so different from every other touch they shared, always violent if not always harmful.

Being here, with Connor, even after they argued, even if they don’t fit, it feels like belonging. It is what’s missing between him and Charles, what’s missing between him and everyone else.

He wishes he didn’t know.

He wishes he hadn’t know.

______________________

If Connor didn’t tell Haytham where Lee was, it was by design. Lee must die, no matter what. Haytham will never approve, but Connor doesn’t require his approval. Assassins are familiar with many drugs, and Haytham forever underestimates him. Slipping him a soporific is child’s play. It’s not enough of an attack for the bond to impede him. He leaves Haytham’s sleeping body in their room and departs for the Green Dragon.

The man is not there, but his lackey is. Finding out where he really is isn’t a hardship. Though, why is Lee leaving the country ? Shouldn’t he stay here, leading the Order ?

Lee’s future plans don’t matter. Dead men don’t have a future.

The fool runs the moment he spots him. Connor doesn’t care. He’s only delaying the inevitable. He pursues him through the city and a burning ship until the scaffolds crumble under them.

Lee recovers before him. He seems better than during the funeral. More settled. “What did you do to him ?”

What. “Who ?”

“Haytham. I know you held him. He’s different.”

That bastard. He went to Lee.

But he didn’t tell him about Connor. “Nothing that will matter to you now.” He shoots. He passes out.

______________________

When he wakes up, Lee is nowhere to be found. He gathers his strength. He follows his trail, all the way to the inn.

He’s exhausted, but Lee is dying. He won.

There is a strange kind of surrender in Lee’s eyes when he passes the bottle, no fight left in him when Connor stabs him and ends his life.

When it’s over, it still doesn’t feel like a victory.

______________________


To say that Haytham is angry when Connor comes back to their room would be too much of an understatement. He’s raging. Connor can tell. Others might not. He looks perfectly in control of himself.

When he speaks, his voice is like marble : smooth and cold. “He’s dead, isn’t he.”

“Yes.”

“Where is he ?”

“I don’t know. Someone probably disposed of his body by now.”

Haytham’s hands curl into fists; loosen; tighten. It’s like he doesn’t know what to do with them. Connor will help him with that. “Hit me.”

“Excuse me ?”

“Hit me. I killed him. Left his body to rot. He might not even get a decent burial. Do it.” He’s quite aware that he’s looking for the fight he didn’t get. Aggression is still running through him (it wouldn’t in a good omega). Lee’s death was too anticlimactic. He needs release.

Haytham refuses him, as he always does. “No.”

“Why not ! You cared about him, more than you ever did about me. Are you not going to avenge him ?”

Haytham’s rigid frame slackens and slumps. Something is… wrong. “Why ? He’s dead. You spent your whole life looking for revenge. It led you here, so unsatisfied that you’re already looking for an enemy to replace him.”

That leaves him cold. “I…”

“We don’t have to fight anymore. My ambitions as a Templar are over. You eliminated all my allies. Charles can’t lead this country; Washington will take over. The Templars will continue no matter what, but without me. I lost.”

Connor was prepared for Haytham’s anger, his sadness, his distrust or even his hatred. This total surrender leaves him helpless.

Haytham isn’t done. “You’re also wrong about Charles. I liked him, but I should have cared about him more. It was common knowledge that he desired me to be his alpha. It was less known that we were sleeping together. But I could never be what he wanted me to be. I didn’t need to; he gave me everything while I had to give nothing back. Would that the two of us be this easy.”

Connor moves before he can stop himself. His bondmate is hurt. He was never faced with this before. Haytham never let himself be this vulnerable in front of him. He hugs Haytham, his face buried in his neck. It’s strange. unusual. perfect.

He can’t see them, but Haytham’s hands fumble around his waist before settling, fingers twisting in the fabric.

Connor’s voice rises against his conscious will, softly. “I am also done. My goals have been reached. We will find a way.”

Haytham snorts. “I sincerely doubt it.”

Connor smiles, hidden. Haytham not trusting him is the most normal thing to happen tonight. “Maybe you’re right. We’ll find out.”