The Renassiance Era. (1x1)

[Yami_no_Tenshi20]

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Alexandria struggled as much as she could, despite being on a horse tied up. She didn't think that the guy would actually have her ride with him, but she wasn't going to make the trip any easier on him. Doel felt his anger rising at the squirming girl, only making his grip harder around her waist. Quickly and delicatly- he pulled out an old seditive that his good doctor had given him if "The need should arise." Well in this case, the need was now. Forcing the girl to his chest more he quickly jammed the needle onto the back of her neck and injected the seditive into her body. The results quickly showing as her body relaxed and slumpped against him. There, that was better. Now when she wakes up the real fun can begin.

******
He circled around the suspended figure, hungrily taking in every detail of the seminude body revealed by the reddish, flickering light of the torches. She was such a small woman, beautiful and well-built, each muscle a work of perfection, likely developed after decades of training, active combat or even dancing? Her long, graceful hands were shackled above her head, high enough that her toes barely touched the floor as she hung, stretched out and helpless. Her pale skin was so smooth, and not even a scar was shown. This was a true assassin- a master at silent kills to the point that the target would be the one dead and her walking away in the shadows without a trace of battle on her.

Still, as she was now, tied up, strung out, unconscious and helpless, Alexandria didn't appear that threatening, didn't seem like the ominous specter of a bird of prey, ready to swoop in and extinguish the lives of their allies. She was just a woman, after all. Then again, there was no sign of softness and weakness in his body, sculpted to perfection as it was, but her face betrayed her, especially now, slack in sleep. She was beautiful in ways that no woman of this day and age could hope to accomplish, so how is that this woman has? Hell even that small tired twist to her full, soft lips was perfect. Her red hair had come loose of its binding some time ago allowing Dole to carefully tucked it behind her ear to take a better look at her face, silently marveling at the silken texture under his fingers.

He smiled. Yes, Dole loved this new challenge, loved the hunt, the conquest. The intangible strings of power his father yielded did not interest him, and he had let go of them by resigning his commission as Cardinale. A sword in his hand, leading his own mafia to victory, reaping the spoils of his work – that was the kind of power he wanted, and the kind of power he enjoyed. And Alexandria, she was the sweetest spoil of all, for she had been a thorn in their side for a long while now- as well as Adeney. That damn boy was going to learn that he can't have everything he wants. He may have been De' Rossi's favorite while he was part of the family. But things were going to change- starting with the girl. So many plans formed in Doel's head. He could just feel the tingle of it all.

His hand cupping Alexandria's cheek gently slid down, almost reverently tracing the elegant line of her throat, spreading over her naked upper chest, the sensitive pads of his fingers feeling the smoothness of her skin.

"I see you are enjoying yourself, Dole." Reggi's smooth voice came behind him and only the younger man's sheer will and experience of battle prevented him from jumping in surprise. He slowly turned to greet the newcomer – a tall man in elegant clothes, his blonde hair framing an ageless, patrician face, too beautiful to belong on a male, too masculine to belong on a female. The man was an enigma, an agent who had long maintained his relative neutrality during the conflict between Assassins and Mafia, not taking part in any active combat though Dole knew he put his considerable intellect in favour of the De'Rossi's ally families and had built some impressive arsenal of weapons.

"Hmm, how can I not? She is going to be my greatest conquest ever- You see I'm going to hit two birds with one stone." When Reggi tilted his head a little in confusion Dole only smiled as he lifted Alexandria's face and smiled even more. "I get the girl, and Adeney gets to see only this." He quickly took out his sharpest dagger, taking the two pig tails on the young womans head and slid his knife across both, chopping off the locks of hair leaving it much shorter on the back, but the bangs long to frame her face. Holding up the two locks Reggi only smiled back.

"Shall I give that to the messenger boy?"

"Yes, have the messenger boy place it in a small present form of our cloth, and send it to that damn painter's house."

"Yes my lord."
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[maaaarcie]

A D E N E Y,x L I E F.

Doel hadn't exactly been paying attention to her as Alexandria eye's fluttered open, but the sound of stirring made him turn his head in time to see her eyes widen in utter surprise at the unfamiliar surroundings. Before she could panic any further, he brought a finger to her lips. "Good morning, sunshine. My lord, do you sleep a lot. I was just considering waking you up myself, but I wanted to give you a more... proper greeting." Obviously, the amount of sleep the redhead had gotten was not the primary concern of her mind. It appeared she remembered who Doel was, as her eyes narrowed in anger, but he could feel her jaw tighten as her muscles tensed in shock. Gently, he removed his finger and smiled placidly. "I assume you'll want something to wear?"

Alexandria yanked away the folded garment from his extended hand, glaring at him, and slipped into what appeared to be a dress. When she smoothed it down, almost immediately she noticed it was much too small. The décolletage was revealingly low, and the chest area of her dress pressed painfully against the swell of pale flesh, as it was most likely intended to. The hemline barely managed to stretch over the black lace of her lingerie and pressed tightly in such area, stretching the thin cloth over her frame. Before she could complain about the conditions of her attire, an accented voice interrupted them.

"I think I liked her better in what she had before." A rather young looking man of dark hair and blue eyes peeked out from the door, displaying a mock pout. The expression quickly spread into a grin, and he leaned against Doel's shoulder in a childish manner. "Who's the pretty lady?"

The blond young man shook him off in a sober kind of irritation. "Her name is Alexandria. She'll be staying here with us for now. What, have you run out of wine?"

"Doel." The pout returned. "You've plenty of wine. Don't take me for Ottavio. I drink when things get a bit dull, but now that you have the fair maiden around, we'll have to work on our manners a bit, no? You've no heart, friend. I just came to tell you your food was long since done and you try to hurt my feelings like an insensitive old folly." The darker haired young man latched himself onto Doel, still pushing out his bottom lip and frowning. It was apparent he normally showed his affection to him like this, since the fair-haired boy remained glowering, but made no means to shake him off.

"Alexandria, we've no shoes for you yet. I've sent for a courier to fetch some slippers at the market, but those won't arrive for a while, so I suggest you go downstairs now to introduce yourself before I show you to your chambers. Unless..." A slight smirk tugged at Doel's lips despite the slightly smaller young man who clung onto him, grinning. "Unless you don't want to leave. Then you get to nap here with me, love. These is my bedroom, after all. I generously let you have my bed for now, but you've been sleeping in my alcove."

Of course, despite the redhead's displeasure, the three descended the stairs to introduce her.

. . .

The mass of red locks lay neatly on the table as Adeney looked at them miserably. He hadn't said much for the past few minutes, and the only sound in the room had been Leonardo taking out every individual knife from a satchel, inspecting their conditions. However, feeling uncomfortable at the other young man's silent despondency, he cleared his throat, attempting to clear the silence. "I'm sure she's fine, brother. He wouldn't have merely sent us her hair if he'd wanted to show us that he'd captured and killed her. Doel's just taunting us with the fact that he's with her somewhere."

"Somewhere. Somewhere, Leonardo. We have no idea where." Adeney slumped against the wall, seething. With every word he spat, his tone grew increasingly hostile. "She must be panicked. Damn it, Leonardo! Why couldn't you defend her? Why did I have to assign myself with Cillian? God dammit!" The skin over his knuckles flashed white as his hand tightened into a fist.

Leonardo took no offense in his outburst. Gently, he let down the satchel and placed a hand on his friend's shoulder, despite the fact that the young man appeared to be in no such mood for talking. "I'm sorry brother, but she would have been targeted either way. All we can do is find her. Do you remember how well you handled your bow? You could easily take her back once we find them. Once we retrieve your old weapon, we'll set on our way, Adeney."

Now a bit more soothed by his words, Adeney gazed at the hint of red on the table and, voice softer, he spoke again. "I remember he'd mentioned something about living down south when we were... companions. It was long ago, but it's worth a try. ""

"Down south, then. We'll take the next ship heading off to the next southern port."

. . .

[Yami_no_Tenshi20]

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The introduction of Alexandria not only sparked Doel's crew not only made them happy and surprised. But it also sparked a lot of... Interest in her. Of course it met this was going to make her life miserable. Very very miserable indeed. She tried her best to keep away from the guys when a party had busted out for capturing the girl and she was glad to keep away from Dole but his lackeys on the other hand were such a pain for her. They kept flipping her skirt up to see her pretty little but, or yank her arm down to try to kiss her. The first night was just a nightmare for her. And she was sure it was going to be more to come.

*One Week Later*
It was morning and sweet smells of breakfast were trailing all throughout the manor. It was spotless! All of the floors had been polished late last night, everything was in its place, the halls had been swept and dusted, and now the daily work begins. Today the house would need to be prepared for a ball tonight, along with a three course meal to serve to guests, there was yard work to be done, then shopping, and so much more! Alexandria was in the kitchen chopping up some beef to go into the stew she had been making. It was steaming hot and sweat dripped down the side of her cheek, she wiped it away with a rag and continued cooking. She added what vegetables there were and tossed them into the pot, then she quickly poured tea into three cup and set them on a stack of trays. Then she pulled out several bowls from the top cabinet and filled them with stew. As she placed a spoon in each one, she could tell they were waiting on her so, she grabbed the tray and went up stairs to deliver their morning meals.

Alexandria struggled a bit up the stairs as she usually did but carefully found her way to the top step without spilling a single drop. Down the first hall, she knocked on the second door on the left and waited for a reply. After a few moments, Alexandria was going to knock again but when her knuckle reached the door as a man spoke. "Come in!" Alexandria opened the door quietly so she wouldn't disturb him. She made her way over to her as silently as she could and when she approached him she gave a fake smile. "Good morning." she said softly. "Would you like this now or should I put it aside. Its slightly hot so maybe I'll just leave it right..." Alexandria was cut off. "I want it. Don't ever make any decisions without my saying so." The man snapped. Alexandria tried to not glare at the man and handed her what she wanted. "I'm sorry."

"Damn right you better be." And soon a small smack was landed on her a** making her sigh in pure agony. Why did these people treat her like this? Alexandria was ordered to exit the room as usual.

A little farther down the hall, Alexandria knocked on a second door on the right side. There was slight snoring coming from inside. She knocked once again, "S-Sango..?" There was no reply. Alexandria peered into the room, praying she wouldn't wake up the man. Carefully she knocked on the wall inside the room. When Alexandria noticed he was waking, she swiftly closed the door. "Y.." Sango yawned. "Yes...?" Alexandria stepped inside and delivered her food to her. "Here, careful, its warm. " Alexandria told him. Sango's eyes were still pressed shut and he wasn't entirely awake just yet. So Alexandria let herself out and left his dish there for him to eat when he was ready. Though, the scent of the tea would most likely wake him up in no time like it always does. Alexandria always remembers to specifically make his tea slightly strong so he could get up on time in the mornings.

Finally, Alexandria went across the hall to the main room, Dole's room.Alexandria knocked on the door and no sooner than she did so Dole invited her in or more like he demanded her. Not giving her a chance to speak, he immediately went over to her, grabbed the bowl and pulled her close. Trying to kiss her or more like smother her with his lips. Only to be shoved away from him. "Enjoy your damn meal." she said. Alexandria glared at him turned around and left him. As she shut the door, she returned downstairs to clean the kitchen.

She wiped down the table and washed all the utensils and pots, she returned the ingredients she had been using to the proper place, and put the waste in the trash. By that time, everyone was awake and had already left her alone in the manor alone and started on her chores. First, she swept the entire house! Next, she scrubbed all the floors to a shine, including the stairs. Then she polish each window, made all the beds in the house, straightened up every room, washed all the morning dishes, and did all the laundry. By now it was noon and she herself hasn't even eaten. Quickly, she poured herself a small helping of this mornings breakfast. At least what was left of it was nearly nothing.
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[maaaarcie]

A D E N E Y,x L I E F.

The aroma of must drifted out the door as soon as it was opened, making Adeney glower in disgust. Inside, the air was weighted by an even stronger combination of cheap cologne and low-grade wine, eminating from the drunken men who stumbled over their own feet to refill their empty glasses. Even more obvious, however, was the scattering of scantily dressed girls who hovered over numbers of inebriated fellows; they were giggling charmingly with an eased pretense, as if they were genuinely interested in the alcohol-induced ramblings of their subjects. In the background was the sound of a piano that droned most of the gleeful, intoxicated chattering, shouting and slurred singing. "Leonardo, I don't think this is a good place to get information. It doesn't seem like anybody in here could help us."

Leonardo was already smiling, looking with immediate interest at the piano player sitting, relaxed, over his instrument as he played the simple tunes. "What? Rubbish. This is the heart of the town for most men, brother. It wouldn't hurt to stop for a moment and just try to get some lead on this search. Besides, the mares probably wouldn't mind the rest. We've been on foot for quite a while." It seemed his argument had worked, as Adeney glanced out the window hesitantly to see his calico horse tied outside in a tired slouch. Grinning at the prospect of victory, he added, "C'mon Adeney, I'll buy you a pint."

The young man shrugged in mild interest at his offer. He had to admit that further mindless searching was asinine if they didn't have any particular location in mind. Plus, at the point in the search, a pint was all he wanted. As Leonardo lifted two fingers at the bartender cheerfully to signal his order, Adeney slipped onto a stool at the counter in a tired slump. The past few days had been bleak. Someone in the past town had directed them to this city, but the clues had stopped there. Once the glass was handed to him, he immediately set to downing its contents. Not that it would alleviate his mood very much, but the numbness of alcohol dimming his senses was gladly welcomed.

Leonardo patted him on the back sympathetically. "Don't worry, friend. Things will turn up for you. Alexandria's a strong girl. She could wait for you." Grinning, he tried to lighten the mood by lightly punching him on the shoulder. "Enjoy yourself for now. There's no use in moping for no reason. Allie wouldn't want you to feel this way either, so you might as well try and muster up a smile for her, eh?"

The words were said in vain, however. As soon as he'd left to go chat with the pianist, he lifted up another finger. He wasn't in the mood to laugh or have fun, like Leonardo could, despite the circumstances. As he drank from the glass cup, he craned his neck to see a slightly clumsy Leonardo swaying happily to the music, already attracting the attention of a small group of people. Sighing, he turned back to his alcohol. Here was his exact opposite, enjoying a chat with his newfound pianist friend and enjoying the good vibe of the pint he'd just drank, while Adeney sat there miserably and wished for nothing more than to drink himself into such a stupor that'd he'd forget who he is, taking drink after drink.

Perhaps he would have allowed himself to do that, had it not been for the hostile man nearby, waving around his drink around like a baton. Annoyed, he turned his head to glare at him in warning, but the man was too busy yelling at one of the inadequately dressed girls in his drunken anger. She looked upset, but it seemed she held her tongue in fear of taking a glass of liquor to the face. "Eh, girly, you were just telling me about how much you thought of me, and now you're telling me I have to pay you coin? What do you take me for, huh?"

Steaming, Adeney got up, immediately dropping the half-empty cup in his hand, indifferent to the loud sound of glass shattering over the floor. "Sei in una botte se non si allontani da lei in questo momento, amico.*" The large man clumsily turned around to identify his new challenger and uncoordinatedly turned to push his chest. Despite the amount of alcohol he'd comsumed, his immense swell of anger had sobered him up a bit quickly. Swiftly, he stood his ground as the man missed, seething quietly. "I'm not telling you again."

The man re-balanced himself and growled, apparently just as infuriated as Adeney. "Lassy, this ain't none of your concern. Move, boy, before I beat the daylights out of you."

With that, Adeney swung his already-clenched fist at the man's jaw, knocking him down swiftly. It helped that the man probably had drank much more than he should have, as he was already sound asleep from the first punch. "I told you I wasn't going to warn you again, idiota.**"

The young lady immediately clung on to him happily, adding to his annoyance. "Vi ringrazio tanto. Sei un tesoro!***" He gently peeled her off of him, frowning a bit. He didn't exactly approve of her revealing dress in the slightest, but there was no reason in his mind not to defend a girl when she was being harassed by somebody.

"Just... please be more careful, ma'am." Just as he started to turn away to grab Leonardo to tell him that they had to leave, he realized he was already standing there, grinning in his slightly intoxicated glee. The girls surrounding him looked just as please as they rushed up to him and the young woman alongside him. Grimacing, he grabbed Leonardo's sleeve. "We need to leave now, Da' Vinci."

"Where are we staying, Adeney?" The slight pout of his friend made him sigh exasperatedly. He knew he was trying to postpone leaving the pub, but Adeney didn't intend to stay here much longer.

"You have nowhere to stay? Oh, poor soul! Since you were so kind in helping me, why don't you and your companion stay with us? My friends just told me about how much of a joy he was anyway." It was that same girl again. A chorus of high-pitched voices pleaded alongside hers, and Adeney felt overwhelmed at the request, but he hesitated in saying yes. She wasn't about to take no for an answer, however, as she tugged on his coat sleeve, insisting, "Please, it's the least we could do!"

Leonardo interrupted him before he could form the words to deny her request. "Of course! That sounds wonderful, if there's no problem with any of you. We're passing through town but we didn't think we'd stay the night, so we have nowhere to stay."

Adeney felt a flash of extreme annoyance. His mildly intoxicated thoughts urged him to deliver one of those swings to Leonardo, but he ruled against it. Instead, he scowled in angered silence, contemplating on his companion's complete idiocy. The boy hadn't had more than a sip or two of his liquor, so it was clear to him that Leonardo was just an overly friendly genius who thought like an idiot.

"Great! Why don't start readying your pretty little horses and then I'll direct you over to where you could stay. It's not far from here, don't worry."

Grumpily, Adeney followed Leonardo in a reluctant pace. The other boy could not apparently see that he was furious at this new decision, as he clung to him in a cheerful manner. "Cheer up, Adeney! Now we've got ourselves a warm bed for the night. Plus, that girl is rather pretty, and she's delighted with you. And some of her friends think you're quite the handsome fellow."

Adeney closed the door behind him, slamming it slightly in his irritance. "They just want money, you blind little twit."

Confirming his thoughts, Leonardo only laughed giddily. "Don't be so modest. They're such nice girls."

. . .

"Alexandria, dear? Why don't we go out today?" Doel's usual serious tone had an undertone of slyness as he addressed the redhead while she cooked frantically. As usual, Sango was in bed, too late for breakfast, Ottavio was sleeping away until his usual waking time of twelve in the afternoon, and Reggi was eating quietly alongside his older friend. It seemed the latter of the three left Alexandria alone most of the time, and his quiet disposition made it appear odd that he may ever act like the rest of them. Doel maintained his mannerisms composed, usually, but every once in a while he would act up with a sadistic sort of eagerness. "It's a lovely day."

"Where would we go?" The request obviously came with some sort of catch. With a apprehensive grimace, she poured his tea into a cup gingerly, trying not to spill anything for fear of being threatened. They wouldn't let her go outside for no reason, and his smirk suggested that it wasn't going to be a light stroll along the trail.

"I was thinking we could go and buy some groceries from the market this morning. Just to enjoy the light walk, you know. Why don't you go and tidy up? Make yourself look presentable while I finish eating, why don't you?" Doel smiled and took a small nibble of sweetened bread as he eyed her with quiet intent.

"Sure, Doel." The redhead knew better than to question him further. Once she hurried along to the lavoratory, she peered into the mirror a bit dejectedly, trying to find a way to fix her forlorn appearance. Despite the purple circles under her eyes and paled skin, she framed her shortened hair around her face and splashed some perfume on. She didn't have many dresses to choose from, and most were rather the same-looking, but she found one that wasn't as particularly revealing as the others and slipped it on. She wasn't sure where they were going, but Alexandria wanted to make sure to please him by doing everything he asked on this surprise little test.

. . .

- Sei in una botte se non si allontani da lei in questo momento, amico:* You're in for a beating if you don't step away from her right now, friend.
- Idiota:** Stupid/dumbass/etc.
- Vi ringrazio tanto. Sei un tesoro.*** Thank you so much. You're a sweetheart.