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December 21, 2012 - Desmond Miles (25 years old)

Minerva and Juno didn’t really give him a choice. Letting the world burn was never going to be an option that Desmond would be willing to make. Not really.

Maybe if he thought about it a bit more. Maybe if things had been different, if he hadn’t felt some kind of camaraderie with Rebecca and Shaun, if he didn’t feel guilty over Lucy’s death or Clay’s sacrifice…

If he hadn’t felt like he was betraying his ancestors and everything they had fought for…

Maybe he would have entertained the idea of letting the world burn.

If Desmond was being completely honest, he would appreciate it if someone else made the choice for him but Desmond had been trying to live impulsively since he left the Farm and the impulsive thing to do was to save the world at the cost of his life, he guessed. 

It would definitely be some kind of fitting end to this crappy life he was currently living.

Not that he had any right to complain as he was the main reason why his current life was crappy in the first place. 

He could justify the fact that he ran away by saying he couldn’t take it anymore, didn’t want to feel beaten and hurt anymore, didn’t want to listen to his father justifying each bruise he left on his son. But the truth was it had been an impulsive decision he made after he received the cut on his lips when another trainee, a child younger than him, accidentally hit Desmond with the supposedly blunt training knife they were using. The other child had been devastated, saying sorry over and over again while Desmond just stared at the drops of blood ruining his white shirt with a doll-like expression on his face which just made the other child cry even harder.

That was when he thought ‘Oh, I wanna run away’ so he did.

Applying for a motorcycle license had been an impulsive choice as well. He had gotten sloppy and complacent after years of peace and that made him want to do something special for his 25th birthday, something risky to celebrate the years of freedom he had lived through, no matter how crappy his apartment was or how he wasn’t close to anyone or had any meaningful relationship with anyone.

Then he got abducted by Abstergo, made to relive the life of Altaïr, and he realized his impulsiveness had been his downfall. So he went along with Vidic and his demands.

After that, he was saved by the Assassins (sorta, thanks, Lucy) and he went along with them as they made him relive the life of Ezio.

When Juno ordered him to relive the life of Ratonhnhaké:ton to find where the key was, he went along with it, not because he wanted to do what that bitch wanted but because the Assassins truly believed this was the only way to save the world.    

A waitress in Bad Weather once described Desmond as a river, just going with the flow, and she wasn’t wrong. Desmond learned early on that it was much easier to roll with the punches than to try to stand his ground. 

And his ‘go-with-the-flow’ attitude helped hide a certain aspect of Desmond’s personality that he didn't really want people to learn about him.

The real reason why he went with whatever was asked of him was because it made it easier to see them as people who just wanted to use him. That made it easier for Desmond to not get too attached to them, to keep them at arms’ length.

He wondered if any of them realized it. 

The Templars used him to get the map from Altaïr’s memories.

The Assassins used him to get Ezio’s Apple and to save the world.

It was fucked up but Desmond could blame this part of his personality as something bitter and twisted that had originated from William Miles. William Miles had him to have a weapon to be used against the Templar. No matter how many times William Miles would say that Desmond’s training was for his own good and to keep him safe, by the age of twelve, Desmond had stopped believing him and only thought he was being trained to be a killer, to be a blade to be used against these supposed Templars. 

In some weird ironic way, he was meant to be the Daniel Cross of the Assassins.

He was sure they didn’t think that way, especially Rebecca and Shaun. Maybe even Lucy but Desmond would never be sure. 

They wanted him to be the second coming of Ezio Auditore. Or maybe even Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad. But that just wasn’t possible.

Desmond wasn’t either of them. He didn’t have Ezio’s charisma nor the privilege similar to that of an Italian nobleman. He didn’t have Altaïr’s unwavering determination to be a great Assassin nor his unbending drive to hoard any information he could get his hands on.  

And that made it all the more tragically laughable that those very same persons, including Ratonhnhaké:ton, were the only people…

The only people who he couldn’t think of as people that wanted to use him, that wanted him for his usefulness…

The three of them didn’t know him. Out of all the ancestors he had to relive in the Animus, only Ezio had known of him and he had never thought of Desmond as someone he can use. Ezio thought the opposite. He wanted to know how he could be of use to Desmond, to know what was his part in all of these. Ezio never got his answers but he was able to move forward, able to leave it all behind, and have a life with Sofia in the end.

Altaïr had been similar. He never truly knew about Desmond but the strange messages he left in his codex pages made Desmond think he, at the very least, had an inkling of how important Ezio would be to the Brotherhood. It was just too strange to be a coincidence that Altaïr wrote words that were about Ezio in the back of two of his codex pages. Altaïr had the drive and an obsession to know everything. If anyone could use the Apple to see glimpses of Desmond and his future, of the future struggles of the Brotherhood, to know how important it would be for Ezio to have the Apple in Venice, it would be Altaïr. Hell, Desmond truly did believe that if there was anyone who would have the balls to try and tip the scales in their favor by manipulating future events, it would be his Syrian ancestor. 

But Ratonhnhaké:ton… he knew nothing. Juno used him like a puppet and had given him nothing in return. Everything he had done to save his people, everything he had sacrificed and he had lost…

In the end, it meant nothing.

Ratonhnhaké:ton wasn’t even given an answer for what it was all for. He didn’t have an Apple like Altaïr that could tell him things. He didn’t have Minerva like Ezio to give him hints of Desmond’s existence.

All Ratonhnhaké:ton had was Juno’s words.

Just like Desmond. 

As the device burned his entire body and as he screamed in agonizing pain, Desmond’s last thought was of Juno.

All the lies and misleading half-truths that have left her lips. 

All the horrible things she had done.

To Desmond…

To Ratonhnhaké:ton…

And how much he wished it was her burning instead of him.  

<Unknown Date> - <Unnamed>  

Oh god.

He knew this feeling.

Oh god.

Was he reliving Ezio’s birth again?

Why? 

Oh man. He hoped he wasn’t in some kind of fucking time loop or some other scifi bullshit right now because if he leaves the Animus after reliving Ezio’s birth again, timeline be damn, he was going to set the entire Abstergo facility on fire this time.

“That’s it! I see a head!” 

Okay. That wasn’t a voice he recognized.

He was pretty sure they were speaking some form of accented English and it was definitely not the Italian-accented voices he had grown familiar with in his time in the Animus reliving Ezio’s life.

The screaming woman was also definitely not Maria Auditore.

Which meant…

“Ah! It’s a boy!” A woman definitely shouted too close for his comfort and he felt someone wipe him clean. He realized he was having a hard time breathing so he tried to inhale.

And immediately started to cry because breathing fucking hurts. 

What the fuck.

He could barely hear a breathless relieved tired laughter as he was handed to someone else.

“Oh, look at you. My precious little miracle. You’re alive.” He felt something continue to drop on his face and it took him a moment to realize they were tears. He was held tightly as a woman whispered, “You’re alive. My baby boy. Thank God Almighty.”

“I promise I will keep you safe. I will protect you. No one will ever take you away from me.” The woman promised with a low whisper, kissing his forehead. His cries started to lessen in volume and soon became soft whimpers as his throat began to hurt. 

“What name shall I tell the mentor?” A female voice asked.

Oh hell. Bill was here? 

He was kinda wondering if Bill knew he had been reborn? Was it possible that the Assassins used the Apple to do some weird shit to bring him back?

Could the Apple even do that?

Would the Assassins even try to mess with the Apple just to get him back in the first place?

“Tell Ah Tabai that my son’s name is…” She announced in a tired but definitely joyful tone, “Edward Mary Bonny.”

Wait. What?

Who the hell was Ah Tabai?

Late 1121 - Edward Mary Bonny (approximately 4 months)

Desmond wasn’t going to lie. It was weird being a baby. There were a lot of things he would rather not think about and would spend his entire life absolutely trying to scrape off his memories. 

But he did learn a few interesting things because people liked to talk about things they should only talk about in private when they were around a baby. 

Or maybe it was because of his mother, he wasn’t sure.

He appreciated the info though.

His mother’s name was apparently Anne Bonny and she had been close to an Assassin by the name of Mary Read. Their names were familiar but it was only when he heard her tell him a story about someone named Blackbeard did he realize that they were pirates.

His mother was a motherfucking pirate.

Hell yeah.

Desmond could get on board with that.

Anyway, Anne wasn’t an Assassin but she was in an Assassin hideout of some sort and had received the Assassins’ protection, mostly due to her closeness with the late Mary Read. She also liked to tell him stories about the adventures of the pirates she knew.  

Desmond wasn’t really that good with history and he will be the first to admit that he had been absolutely spoiled by the Animus’ database that both Shaun and Rebecca worked on. What he was definitely certain about was that he was definitely somewhere (somewhen?) before Ratonhnhaké:ton was born, because, among the pirates Anne liked to tell stories about, she liked to talk about a pirate by the name of Captain Edward Kenway quite a lot.

And Desmond vaguely remembered Ratonhnhaké:ton telling Mister Faulkner that his grandfather had sailed with a ‘rough’ crew. 

His grandfather was named Edward.

Ergo, it was highly possible (and might even be the only logical conclusion) that the Captain Edward Kenway Anne liked to tell him stories about was the very same Grandfather Edward that Ratonhnhaké:ton once mentioned to Mister Faulkner.

Did he really just use the word ‘ergo’?

Ugh.

The people around him weren’t exactly the posh-type like Haytham Kenway had been but their way with words was definitely different from what Desmond was used to. He was already dreading having to learn their version of the English language and being known as the weird one because he was going to slip and say some 21st-century American word they wouldn’t understand.

Actually, he was pretty sure everyone in the Assassin’s hideout found him weird already. He rarely cries and he refuses to drink his mother’s milk.

He knew he made Anne sad every time he refused her but there was no way in hell he was getting breastfed. He may be a baby but it felt like he was taking advantage of her if he even sees her bare breast.

It was good to know breastfeeding wasn’t one of his secret kinks though. 

Silver lining, Desmond supposed. 

Being a baby was boring and the highlight of his everyday life will always be the fun (absolutely baby censored) stories his mother would tell him about the pirates she knew and even about her own adventures. They were nice to listen to and kept him from thinking about how screwed up his current situation was.

He was a man from the 21st century reborn in the past (he wasn’t sure the year or the century) as a baby. When he was left on his own, his mind would always circle back to a single question that he just knew would be plaguing his entire life:

What the hell was he doing in this time period anyway? 

Early 1122 - Edward Mary Bonny (1 year old)

A year passed in his new life and he only knew a year had actually passed because, a week ago, his mother kissed his chubby cheek and cheerfully greeted him as she handed him a crude-looking doll of what looked like an Assassin pirate or something, Desmond wasn’t entirely sure but he appreciated the thought, “Happy birthday, my little miracle.”  

“Senk, mama.” He tried to say and Anne’s smile brightened and she kissed his forehead, making Desmond let out a giggle. 

He had started to think of Anne as his mother early on. Like 3 months old early on if he was completely honest. It was just easy to think of her as his mother when she was almost always with him, giving him the motherly love Desmond wasn’t sure he ever received before. His memories of William Miles’ wife were vague and he couldn’t help but wonder if she ever held him like Anne did, like he was the most precious thing in the entire world. 

Regardless of his feelings for his past parents, his mother was putting them all to shame. She was gentle and kind but she definitely had a mischievous side to her. His refusal to drink her breast milk made her and her Assassin friends(?) give him goat milk instead, which he was cool with. 

But about five months ago, Desmond noticed the milk’s taste had changed. He had ignored it at first as it wasn’t a bad taste, just different, and he trusted his mother to actually check the milk before giving it to him.

It seemed she had a difficult pregnancy and everyone had assumed that Desmond wouldn’t make it so Anne was a bit overprotective of him. She was definitely not going to let spoiled milk make him sick, that much Desmond was sure of.

Then, about two months ago, Desmond noticed the usual Assassin who would deliver the milk to their little home hadn’t visited them in months. 

Seeing the happy look on her face as she watched her son grab the small silver cup (he stopped using the bottle after he refused to use it and kept repeating the word ‘cup’ until Anne relented and gave him a cup filled with goat milk instead) filled with the questionable white liquid. Desmond stared at her with narrowed eyes and Anne seemed to have noticed something was wrong as she stared back at him with a slightly forced smile as she asked, “What’s wrong, my little miracle? Aren’t you going to drink your milk?”

The forced cheerfulness in her voice immediately pinged off Desmond’s ‘danger’ senses and it took a lot of effort for him to grunt out the words with as much clarity as his developing baby mouth could, “Mama… mik…?”

The way his mother’s entire face froze was a dead giveaway.

“O-of course not.” Anne (bless her) tried, “That’s goat milk. Remember the goat? It goes ‘meeehh’.”

Desmond was not proud of what he did next but he needed to make a point. 

“NOH WIES!” Desmond screamed in the most annoying high-pitched tone his vocal chord could reach without severely hurting him. 

Jesus, it hurt his ears as well but some things must be endured to ensure that his point would be taken seriously.

He would have thrown the cup to the floor to be more dramatic but he didn’t want to make a mess so he just pushed the cup away from him as he screamed once more, “NOH WIEEEEEES!!!”

No matter how much Anne tried to console her son, Desmond remained steadfast. He banged his chubby little hands on the wooden table loudly as he repeatedly chanted, “NO WIES! NO WIES! BAD MAMA! BAD MAMA!!! NO WIES!!!” 

Shaun and Rebecca must never know about this.

He really, really hoped he gets a hang on speaking soon. His current way of speaking was embarrassing. 

His ‘planned’ temper tantrum had the desired effect. Before long, people he was sure were Assassins rushed inside their little home, armed to fight whatever possible threat had passed through their guards and patrols because of how loudly he had been yelling. Even an older brown robe-clad man exuding authority had barged in, asking Anne if she and her son were alright.

He knew the man as Ah Tabai, the mentor of the Brotherhood keeping Anne safe. As soon as he had entered their home, Desmond stopped screaming and tried his very best to give him a disappointed glare that was part Ezio and part Altaïr. 

He was sure it failed because one of the Assassins let out a soft ‘aaww’ at him but Desmond kept his ‘glare’ at the mentor who noticed.

“Mentow.” Desmond greeted with a nod and with as much gravitas as a one year old baby could muster. 

Anne bit the inside of her cheek and her shoulders slightly trembled but he appreciated her trying to honor her son’s efforts. Ah Tabai stared at him for a moment before nodding as he greeted back, “Mister Bonny.”

Desmond placed a chubby hand on the small silver cup and pushed it towards him slightly as he ordered, “No mama mik.” 

The mentor and his mother glanced at one another before the mentor nodded and walked toward him as he solemnly promised, “We understand, Mister Bonny. No more… mama milk.”

Both mentor and baby paid no attention to the sniggering Assassins behind the mentor as he took the cup. Desmond placed his hand on top of the cup, stopping the older man from taking it. He (tried to) glared at Ah Tabai as he stressed as hard as his developing high-pitched cute baby voice could, “Gwot mik onri.”

The mentor didn’t immediately reply and Desmond just knew that the bastard had been planning something but, hah, Desmond got him!

“Of course.” The mentor finally nodded slowly as he repeated, “Goat milk only.”

Desmond stared at him for a few seconds mainly to watch him squirm which he didn’t do but Desmond was sure if his baby face had been able to copy Altaïr’s and Ezio’s disappointed mentor glare he would be. 

Oh, he would be.

Desmond nodded and slowly pulled away his hand from the cup as he said, “ Bene .”

Seriously? 

He couldn’t say ‘milk’ properly but he could say ‘good’ in Italian without a problem?

What the hell was up with this body???

The mentor stared at him for a moment before finally taking the cup and turning to face Anne who was covering her mouth with her hand as her shoulders trembled. Desmond would have assumed she was trying not to cry had he not noticed the grin she was hiding behind her hand.

“Mister Bonny wants goat milk only.” Ah Tabai said with such seriousness that it made the other Assassins unable to hide their chuckling anymore.

“I… I understand.” Anne snickered as she grabbed the cup from Ah Tabai. 

Desmond ignored all the snickering and the chuckling. He got what he wanted and that was what mattered. 

And he was absolutely going to ignore the weird glances Ah Tabai was giving him. That was future!Desmond’s problem now.

October, 1722 - Edward Mary Bonny (1 year old)

Later that year, everyone left the Assassin hideout and traveled to a new island. It was beautiful and sunny as hell. Desmond couldn’t wait to get enough control of his limbs to go exploring. His mother and he were given a large room in the mansion overlooking the cove with a wonderfully soft bed. He would later overhear his mother and the mentor talk about how this entire island had been given to them by the pirate (and now Assassin) Edward James Kenway and that he had been clear that the big room next to theirs will be Desmond’s room once he was old enough.

Edward James Kenway visited them a few days later after a long journey that took him to different locations, all in the hopes of finishing off the Templar Rites in the West Indies. Desmond was sure that he was missing a lot of information about Edward Kenway’s mission (including what may or may not be another Piece of Eden) but it was hard to gather information when one was a baby that still couldn’t fully control his limbs.

Still, this would be the first time Desmond would meet Edward Kenway. Apparently, he had visited him and his mother when Desmond was just a few weeks old but Desmond was pretty sure he was sleeping when he visited. He remembered waking up one time as his mother said goodbye to the young Assassin that had been watching Desmond while she was out, her eyes puffy and red and she held him tight as she sang to him. He could smell the distinct fragrance of seawater, rum, gun powder, and that disgusting smell of someone who hadn’t taken a bath for a while.

Seeing Edward Kenway in person (and smelling him), Desmond could clearly see his resemblance to Haytham Kenway which made Desmond’s initial guess that he was Ratonhnhaké:ton’s grandfather all the more probable (and Desmond could confirm that he was the source of the strange smell that day). 

Edward had approached his mother after talking to Ah Tabai while she was sitting on top of the stone balustrade, just outside the manor, with her son on her lap. They were staring at the cove below them while people around them laughed and drank. Desmond hoped that the people who would end up drunk would be the crew of Edward Kenway’s ship and not members of the Brotherhood. Altaïr never forbade drinking when he had been the mentor and Ezio had always enjoyed drinking wine with his students and fellow Assassins but it was an unwritten rule that Assassins were not allowed to drink too much that they would become useless in case of a surprise attack. 

Edward and Anne talked while Desmond sat on his mother’s lap, holding a carving of an Assassin in each of his chubby little hands which he rolled in his palms out of boredom while he continued to look at the cove below. Whoever gave these to him probably never had a baby or never gave a gift to a baby before because these little carvings were choking hazards. They were lucky Desmond liked how the carvings looked a bit like the traditional robes of the Levantine Brotherhood and he was obviously not going to put them in his mouth. While he kept his eyes staring ahead, he couldn’t help but listen in to their conversation.

“I'll be sailing for London in the next few months,” Edward informed Anne as he sat next to her. He was so close that their thighs and shoulders were already touching. He turned to face Anne as he said, “I'd be a hopeful man if you were beside me.”

Desmond froze at those words.

He didn’t have any memories of Ratonhnhaké:ton ever talking about Haytham’s mother but… was it possible that Desmond’s mother was Haytham’s mother as well?

Had he been reborn as Haytham’s half-brother?

Desmond’s mind began to reel at that thought.

If he was Haytham’s brother… then…

“England's the wrong way 'round the globe for an Irishwoman.” Anne replied before caressing her son’s dark brown curling locks as she gently added, “Also, you will have your hands full in England. We’ll just get in your way.”

“You will never be in the way, Anne. You or…” Edward poked Desmond’s chubby cheek as he teased, “Little Eddie Junior here.” 

Desmond tried to glare at the older man but, considering the amused grin he was giving Desmond, he assumed he failed at trying to intimidate the man.

Edward gently caressed Desmond’s cheek with the back of his fingers as he asked softly, “Will you stay with the Assassins?”

“Probably. I don’t know yet.” Anne admitted with a sigh, “Ah Tabai has promised me he will keep me and my son safe even if I don’t join them. I… I don’t know if I have that kind of conviction in my heart. Not like Mary anyway. But…”

The red-haired woman looked at the little boy on her lap and whispered, “My son will be safe here. He can grow up here and I won’t have to worry if I would have enough to buy food and still have a roof over our heads every single day simply because I am a woman with a child but no husband.”

She sighed once more as she added, “I do not think my ex-husband would appreciate it if I came back with a son.”

They grew quiet for a few moments before she asked, “What about you? Are you going to join them?”

“In time, aye…” Edward answered with a nod, “When my mind is settled and my blood is cooled.”

Edward’s entire body tensed as all three of them saw a ship sailing towards the docks. They heard someone announce, “Sail ho! Coming into the cove!”

Edward jumped off the stone balustrade and turned to face Anne and Desmond. He gently grabbed one of Anne’s hands and gently repeated, “Come with me to London, Anne. I promise there will never come a day when you and your son will ever-”

Anne pressed her fingers against Edward’s lips, forcing the man to stop talking. She smiled softly at him as she gently said, “You're a good man, Edward. And if you learn to keep settled in one place for more than a week, you'll make a fine father too.”

She glanced at the ship docking the cove before whispering to him, “But it is not my son that needs you as his father.”

“Anne,” Edward whispered and grabbed her other hand. He kissed the knuckles of both of her hands before whispering, “You will always have a place in London with me. Both you and your son.”

“And you will always have a place with us here, Edward.” Anne smiled softly, “But, right now, you should find your place in London. With your daughter.”

They shared a brief chaste kiss and Edward placed his hand on the back of her head as he pressed a soft kiss on her forehead before letting her go. He knelt and gently caressed Desmond’s head as he whispered with a small sad smile on his face, “I’ll come visit you and your mother soon. Be a good lad and take care of your mother for me, Little Eddie Junior.”

Desmond didn’t really appreciate the nickname but seeing the sad expression on his face reminded Desmond too much of Haytham Kenway’s final moments with his son. Desmond frowned slightly and offered the older Kenway one of the carvings in his hand, making sure to give him the one that looked less like Altaïr (which he had been calling Malik in his head). Edward’s lips curved into a small smile and he took the carving from Desmond, ruffling his hair as he said, “Thank you, lad.”

“Sefti en Pis, Ewad.” Desmond tried to tell him, frowning as he was unable to say it correctly. From the confused but amused look both Edward and Anne were giving him, he was certainly unable to even say it coherently enough. The young baby sighed and waved his hand as he said, “See you.”

Edward grinned and pressed a soft kiss on his forehead as he whispered, “I’ll see you soon, Little Eddie Junior.”

Edward and Anne shared one long silent look before he walked away from them. Both mother and child watched him leave for a moment before Anne held her son in her arms and she slowly turned around before jumping off the stone baluster. Anne began to sing and one of the men drinking started to accompany her song with his guitar. Someone began to play the flute as well and Anne gently swayed her and Desmond as she continued to sing, her back turned away from the cove.  

Late 1722 - March, 1724 - Edward Mary Bonny (1 - 3 years old)

Life as the only child of the Assassin Brotherhood in Great Inagua was a strange experience. Ah Tabai had shown interest in him early on and Desmond didn’t really help dissuade the man with his strange actions. Anne had been worried that he was planning on raising her son to be an Assassin so she always kept a close eye whenever the mentor would visit her son.

Which meant Anne also saw how strange her son would act at times.

It started out simple enough. 

Ah Tabai came by one day and gave Desmond a few small wood carvings similar to his ‘Altaïr’ wood carving. He watched as the boy picked each one, stared at it while turning them around, and picked a wood carving that looked like it could be a very badly carved version of Ezio’s Assassin robes from when he was the mentor in Rome. He placed the Ezio wood carving next to his Altaïr wood carving before dividing the other carvings into three small piles. One pile was for what looked like other Assassin carvings he didn’t recognize (he believed some of them looked like the statuses he saw in Ezio’s memories), obviously Templar carvings (the carving of a cross was a dead giveaway), and the last pile was for carvings he didn’t recognize.

Ah Tabai pointed at his Altaïr carving and asked, “What is this one’s name, Mister Bonny?”

Desmond stared at him, contemplating if he should answer the man truthfully. On one hand, it wasn’t like anyone was going to believe him if he said he died in the future and got reborn in the past. That was just some kind of time-bending scifi bullshit no normal person would think possible. On the other hand, Ah Tabai had proven to be a very accepting and calm person so Desmond wouldn’t be surprised if he did believe Desmond if he tried to tell him the truth.

But there was always the possibility that he would be branded as crazy and Desmond wanted to avoid that.

Eh. 

Desmond wanted to see how this would go.

“... Awtaew.” Desmond replied, pouting when his baby mouth couldn’t pronounce it properly. He tried again, slowly this time, “Aw… Ta… Ew.”

Desmond sighed. He really needed to practice speaking. Still, he persisted, “Awtaew Ib-WaAad.”

Ah Tabai’s eyes were slightly wide as he asked, “Do you mean Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad?” 

Desmond nodded furiously as he said, “Yesh!”

He waved his Altaïr carving as he repeated, “Awtaew!”

“And this one?” Ah Tabai pointed at his newly acquired carving.

Desmond grabbed it and tried to pronounce, “Esho Owdatowe da Fiwenshe.”

“Ezio Auditore…” Ah Tabai looked unsure of Desmond’s other words and the child nodded at him.

“Da Fiwenshe.” Desmond repeated, pouting at the inability to pronounce it properly. 

“I see…” Ah Tabai muttered as he stared at the baby with intense eyes. 

Desmond ignored him and waved his two carvings as he shouted, “Wayt! Pent!”

Both adults didn’t understand his request which only made Desmond sigh.

It would take him two more years to finally get white (and red) paint for his two favorite (bias) carvings. 

Since that fateful day (over exaggeration perhaps), Ah Tabai would sometimes visit him with new wood carvings. Desmond was confused by many of them and Ah Tabai learned soon enough that Desmond only reacted to wood carvings that reminded him of the Levantine Brotherhood during the 13th century, as well as the Italian Brotherhood and the Ottoman Brotherhood during the 15th century. Anne had loosened up as well, mistaking Ah Tabai’s interest in his son as more akin to a lonely man trying to form a connection with a child. By the time Desmond was two, he had a lot of small wood carvings to fill up the small bedside desk they had in their room. Anne assumed they were toys and Desmond’s replies to the mentor’s questions were the same as a child talking about his imaginary friends and the adventures they go through. 

They were not.

The more Ah Tabai questioned Desmond, the better his pronunciations became. It was more like an interrogation for Ah Tabai and a form of speaking practice for Desmond.

It also made Desmond realize something very important.

His Bleeding Effect was gone.

He thought it had been strange that he couldn’t hear Altaïr, Ezio, or Ratonhnhaké:ton in his head anymore or their ghostly visage didn’t pop out randomly anymore but he had thought it might be because he was still a baby. But the older he got and the more he talked about what he had experienced reliving Altaïr’s and Ezio’s memories, the more Desmond realized that he was missing small details about them. He couldn’t remember any of their memories clearly. He remembered the important parts, sure, but not the little details he would usually remember like his ancestor whispering to him, like they were reminding him of that little unimportant detail like the name of the tea Ratonhnhaké:ton threw into the waters, the colors of the flowers in the garden where Ezio kidnapped Lucrezia Borgia or the faces of the beggars that liked to swarm Altaïr when he walked the streets of the poor district in Acre. But he could still draw a detailed map of Masyaf Fortress, Villa Auditore, and the Davenport Homestead. 

Hell, if he thought really hard about it, he was sure he could draw a sorta-maybe detailed map of Florence and New York.

It was like his mind had kept the important parts, the parts that were important to his ancestors, the parts that made an impact, and just forgot the rest. 

It was disorienting and… saddening. 

It was like he had forgotten a hugely important part of his life.  

It really said something about Desmond’s mental and emotional state that he was saddened by the fact that he no longer had a very dangerous side-effect from using the Animus. It truly cemented to him that, out of everyone he had ever met as Desmond Miles, his three ancestors: Altaïr, Ezio, and Ratonhnhaké:ton were the most important people in his life.

On the other hand, he can confirm he still had their skill sets. At the very least, his chubby 3-year-old hands definitely managed to steal the coin pouch from one of the drunk sailors with the pickpocketing he had gotten from Ezio. 

In Desmond’s defense, the drunk sailor had been rude to one of the younger novices that had (secretly) given Desmond rock candies before. He made sure to give all the coins to the poor novice who just stared at him with an open mouth.

No one even scolded him for stealing and some of them even ruffled his hair. His mother had only laughed and kissed his cheek.

It was good to know both Assassins and pirates appreciated his Ezio-given talent in pickpocketing.

That single event seemed to have opened some kind of metaphorical floodgates because, now, every Assassin in Great Inagua considered him as a baby-Assassin-in-training and some of the younger Assassins would even try to teach him skills that no one should ever teach a three-year-old. Desmond was already dreading the future in which these young Assassins would actually have children of their own.

Anne seemed to have made up her mind as well. While she didn’t officially join the Brotherhood, she had started to train with them. It started with her trying out the moves the Assassins were trying to teach Desmond but, before long, they were teaching her too. Desmond wasn’t sure if she was truly interested in learning or if she realized that her son was interested and had decided to learn so she could keep protecting Desmond.

Ah Tabai was a… well… he was a difficult case to explain, Desmond supposed. He kept a close eye on Desmond but never confronted him about the things a baby shouldn’t know. They just kept their almost daily short visits but he had stopped giving Desmond wood carvings which was nice, Desmond supposed. If he had continued to give him those wood carvings, they'd probably end up filling their room before Desmond turned eight.  

Desmond also found out when he was born.

March 13, 1721.

Desmond wasn’t sure if it was some kind of Isu-humor that he was born on the same date as Desmond Miles was born but he’ll roll with it. The important part was the year.

Desmond didn’t memorize the important dates and years in any of his ancestors’ memories because he always assumed he would be able to recall them if he ever needed to remember them and that had come to bite him in the ass now that his Bleeding Effect had gone kaput on him. But there were a few dates that Desmond could still clearly remember. Dates that had been important to his ancestors and one of them was ‘November 2, 1760’. 

The day Ratonhnhaké:ton met Charles Lee and lost his mother.

That was the most important future date Desmond could remember.

And he had thirty-nine years to prepare for it.

January 1726 - Desmond Edward Mary Bonny (4 years old)

He had spent the last year trying to get his body and his speech to work the way he was used to. It hadn’t gone too well (Desmond might have gotten scolded a lot for being too reckless and he might have broken a lot of bones in the process) and he had been told by Ah Tabai that he needed to slow down and to give his body time to grow on its own.

At this point, he was pretty sure Ah Tabai had an inkling of what Desmond was (or who he was) but the mentor never said anything to him and Desmond never tried to push him.

He managed to get everyone to call him ‘Desmond’ though which was nice. Anne had looked a bit saddened by this but she didn’t stop him.

Maybe it was because Desmond ‘suggested’ that it would be better if people didn’t know he was named after Edward Kenway… especially his new wife. 

Oh, yeah. Edward Kenway got married last year. Desmond didn’t really know anything about that, only having read it (thank god he still knew how to read) from one of Edward’s letters to his mother last year. That was the only letter he had ever read without her mother knowing (and Edward liked to send Anne letters almost every month which Desmond just promptly ignored) but he had been curious and worried when he saw his mother looking sad while reading the letter. 

Desmond had been surprised. He didn’t even know Edward had been seeing (should he use the word ‘courting’?) anyone in London. He was pretty sure his mother didn’t know about that either.

Anyway, Edward had sent another letter last year, inviting Anne and Desmond to his estates in London to meet his wife and, hopefully by the time they got there, their newborn baby. 

Anne clearly didn’t want to go and, had it been any other baby, Desmond would have supported her decision. But, if Desmond was right about Edward Kenway’s connection to Ratonhnhaké:ton, this baby was going to be Haytham Kenway, and Desmond needed to be sure. He needed to hear the name of the baby.

Which he could totally learn via letter but there was also a part of Desmond that wanted to see with his own eyes, that wanted to hear with his own ears…

He needed to be sure.

Anne had hesitated but relented after Desmond had begged to see ‘Unca Eddie’s baby’ repeatedly. It helped that Desmond rarely insisted on anything. If anyone was asked, they would probably only remember the ‘memorable mama milk’ debacle and Desmond’s insistence on a certain hue of white (and red) paint for his two favorite wood carvings.

One of Anne’s close friends and a member of the West Indies Brotherhood, Adéwalé, had been the one to offer his ship to them. Adéwalé and Anne mostly talked about Edward and the other pirates they used to know but, without a doubt, the best part of their trip to London was seeing Desmond running all over the ship much to the amusement of Adéwalé’s crew. 

Desmond’s favorite part, on the other hand, was Adéwalé trying to teach him to sail. Everyone had been surprised by how quickly a four-year-old was learning how to sail and Desmond would like to thank Ratonhnhaké:ton’s memories for that. Ratonhnhaké:ton had loved to sail and his love for it definitely showed by the fact that Desmond could still remember Ratonhnhaké:ton’s memories of how to sail and command a ship. Most of the things Adéwalé was teaching him were the same things he already knew thanks to his ancestor’s memories but there were some things that were different but interesting nonetheless.

Adéwalé and Anne had looked proud when Desmond showed that he could command a ship well for a few minutes, even when a strong gale approached them. He wasn’t allowed to stir the ship though because he was still too young but Adéwalé listened to Desmond’s orders and stirred it for him. Adéwalé had even commented that Desmond could probably have his own ship once he was a little older.

The idea of owning his own ship was appealing, for sure, but Desmond couldn’t help but long for a certain specific ship.

They reached London in the second week of January. After Anne and Desmond said goodbye to Adéwalé, they disembarked the brig Victoire with a single suitcase. Desmond wasn’t sure how they were going to find the Kenway Estates and he had been wondering if his mother would allow him to climb a high enough building to use his Eagle Vision. Anne knew about it after the Assassins in Great Inagua had gushed about Desmond’s mastery of it. It was quite disheartening to know that most Assassins no longer possess the Eagle Vision or even know how to learn it. He knew the decline had started early on and it was already a rarity during Ezio’s time. Not to mention, the way to learn it had been lost through the ages. It was still disheartening for Desmond as he remembered how being able to use the Eagle Vision had been a requirement before one could attain a rank higher than novice in the Levantine Brotherhood. It wasn’t like Desmond could help them as his memories of Altaïr only vaguely touched upon the training needed for the Eagle Vision since Altaïr didn’t think of it as important when he had been learning it, having already had a strong grasp of his Eagle Vision at such an early age. 

Desmond’s musing came to a halt when they heard a familiar male voice shout, “Anne!”

Anne’s face brightened when they saw Edward running towards them, followed by another man who looked like he could be a butler or… maybe a chauffeur? Was that what they were called?

“Edward!” Anne shouted back and both of them laughed when Edward grabbed her by the waist and turned them around twice. Anne had to let go of both their luggage and Desmond’s hand which he didn’t mind, enjoying the happiness etched on his mother’s face. 

Edward gently dropped her back to the ground and grinned at Desmond as he knelt in front of him, “My God! You’ve grown so big, Little Eddie Junior!”

Desmond let the older man ruffle his hair as he said, “It’s Desmond now, Unca Eddie.”

“Of course, of course.” Edward nodded, seemingly unsurprised by it (his mother probably wrote to him about his preferred name), and lifted Desmond up from the ground, making the boy yelp in surprise, “But no matter what name you give yourself, you will always be my Little Eddie Junior!”

Desmond couldn’t help the loud squeak-like yell that came out of his lips as he was thrown high up the air before Edward caught him once more. Edward laughed at the look of surprise on the boy’s face and he did it once more. This time Desmond let out a burst of surprised laughter as he was reminded of the feeling of taking a leap of fate. 

Edward threw him two more times before finally letting him rest on his forearm and taking their luggage with his other hand. He grinned at Anne as he guided her towards his carriage, all the while the poor man following Edward looked so confused about what he was supposed to do. 

Desmond wasn’t sure if he liked Edward’s new wife. She had been waiting in front of their estate together with a young girl Desmond assumed was Edward’s daughter, Jennifer Scott. The older woman looked at Anne and then at Desmond (still being carried by Edward) for a moment before giving them a forced small smile as she introduced herself as Tessa Kenway, Edward’s wife. 

The stress on the word was totally unnecessary but Anne seemed to have taken it as a challenge for some reason, introducing herself as Anne Bonny, Edward’s old friend. 

Oooohhh, boy.

Desmond patted Edward’s shoulder and begged (really, he was begging at this point) to see the baby. Edward, who may or may not have noticed the obvious tension between the two women, put Desmond down and asked Jenny to take him to see the baby.

Jenny just nodded and told Desmond to follow her which he gladly did. He was totally not going to be near his mother and Edward’s wife at the moment. Let Edward handle that awkward situation.

Jenny kept glancing at him while she guided him through the estate which Desmond ignored, looking around and admiring the craftsmanship and decor. His inner Ezio was definitely gushing over the interior, that was for sure.

His inner Desmond could only think ‘oh, Unca Eddie’s filthy rich, damn’.

When they reached a large (compared to Desmond’s current small height) door, the young dark blonde-haired girl turned to face him and asked bluntly, “Do you know who your father is?”

Desmond blinked at the question, staring at her serious expression. He tilted his head slightly as he corrected, “Was.”

“Pardon?” She copied him and tilted her head slightly as well.  

“My pa’s dead.” Desmond explained casually, “His name was John Rackham but most people know him as the pirate Calico Jack.”

Or so he was told.

Desmond never bothered to think about the other half of the genes he currently had in him, in all honesty. 

He thought it was strange he looked a lot like the baby pictures he saw back on the Farm but it could just be a coincidence. He’d just have to check once he’s older if he was in a new body or if his old body was just… transported and deaged? 

Desmond always got a headache trying to understand the tech Minerva and her kind had so he tried not to think too much about it.

Jennifer, or Jenny as her father called her, narrowed her eyes and asked, “Are you sure your mother wasn’t lying?”

Desmond snorted and rolled his eyes as he replied, “If mama was going to lie about who my papa was, she would pick someone better than a drunk pirate like Calico Jack.”

Jenny frowned as she mulled over Desmond’s words. Letting the girl think about whatever the hell she was thinking about now (Desmond really didn’t get why she was interested in who his father was supposed to be), Desmond stood on his tiptoes to turn the knob. He slowly opened the door just in case the baby was sleeping and went inside as quietly as he could. The woman sitting in a rocking chair near a crib looked at him with wide eyes before turning her attention towards Jenny who just walked in without any care about how loud her footsteps were.

Both children stood in front of the crib where a baby was sleeping with both its hands lying on either side of its head.

“His name is Haytham.” Jenny said bluntly, watching her baby brother’s face scrunch up at the sound of her voice, “I don’t know why father gave him such a strange name.”

“It means young or little eagle in Arabic,” Desmond mumbled as he slowly reached out one hand. The woman who was most probably baby Haytham’s nanny or wet nurse looked ready to stop him but Jenny glared at her. 

Desmond poked the baby’s hand and his eyes widened when Haytham closed his fist around his finger tightly.

His heart ached as he remembered the resigned sad expression of a man long dead.

Desmond rested his chin against the crib as he whispered, “Hi, Haytham. My name is Desmond and I…”

Desmond faltered, unsure of what to say next.

He had wanted to see Haytham with his own eyes but, subconsciously, he had expected to see the calm, dangerous Grand Master from Ratonhnhaké:ton’s memories. 

But seeing him now…

He was just a little baby…

As he stared at the little baby sleeping peacefully, Desmond realized that he had a chance. A chance to change things.

He didn’t know enough of future events to change anything big. His history lessons back on the Farm had been severely lacking, more focused on combat and stealth training. Hell, he wasn’t even sure if he should change any big future events in the first place. How can Desmond be sure that he wouldn’t screw shit up even more if he did try to change anything?

But he wanted to change one specific thing.

Or, to be more exact, he wanted to give someone he cared about the happiness he deserved.

He was born more than 600 years too late to assist Altaïr.

He was born more than 300 years too late to help Ezio. 

But it wasn’t too late for Ratonhnhaké:ton. 

He could give Ratonhnhaké:ton what he should have had in the first place…

A happy family that will love and protect him… 

Desmond smiled softly as he whispered, “I’m gonna be your big brother.”

Jenny and the baby’s wet nurse stared at him but he paid it no attention.

He was going to do everything he could to make sure Ratonhnhaké:ton gets to be born into a loving family that will give him the happiness he deserves.

If it meant being Haytham Kenway’s (sorta) big brother to keep him from being a Templar…

Then that was what Desmond was going to do.

Years 1726 - 1734 - Desmond Edward Mary Bonny (4 - 13 years old)

For the next nine years, Desmond spent his time learning the ways of the West Indies Brotherhood and visiting the Kenway Estate with his mother. At the very least, they tried to visit the Kenways every December to celebrate Haytham’s birthday. Desmond had insisted on visiting ‘Lil’ Haytham’ and he knew that his mother had relented mostly because she liked visiting Edward as well. He wondered if there was something more going on with them so he followed them once when he had been around six years old. Jenny caught him sneaking around and he managed to get her to join him instead. They listened from the other side of the secret room Edward had in the basement and the two simply spent the entire time talking about the people they have lost, most especially Mary Read.

“Do you miss her?”

“Aye. Every day. You?”

“Not a day passes by that I do not wish she was with me. She would have loved Desmond.”

“She certainly would have.”

“She would have loved Jenny and Haytham too.”

The two children left when their parents started to sing sea shanties as they continued to drink the night away. Neither of them said anything to anyone.

That year, Jennifer Scott started to send him letters. Nothing strange, of course. Just letters talking about how her family was doing, focusing mainly on Edward and Haytham. 

In his replies, Desmond focused on telling her about his mother and the other members of the West Indies Brotherhood. He made sure to keep the ‘Assassin-ness’ vague though since he didn’t know if Jenny knew about Edward being an Assassin in the British Brotherhood. 

He wasn’t sure what Jenny thought of him actually. Whenever he visited the Kenway Estates, she would always be there to welcome him and his mother but she didn’t stay that often. Sometimes, she would stay to watch him play with Haytham but she never joined them. Other times, she would spend the afternoon talking to Anne and listening to her tell stories about her adventures as a pirate. Desmond was pretty sure she was also telling Jenny about some of the missions she had done for the Brotherhood ever since Anne had officially been inducted into the West Indies Brotherhood.

That was where Desmond spent a lot of his time too. Anne had been reluctant in having Desmond join her when she was sailing in the Jackdaw but she relented soon enough when Desmond proved to be a good quartermaster even though he was only nine years old. He was young, sure, but the crew of Anne’s Jackdaw was all members of the West Indies Brotherhood that had known Desmond since he was a baby. By the time he was about eleven years old, he was pretty much living in the Jackdaw full time. Edward had donated the Jackdaw to the Brotherhood years ago and Ah Tabai had given it to her after she had been inducted into the West Indies Brotherhood. 

Ah Tabai had picked their crew specifically for one simple reason. They all believed Ah Tabai’s theory that Desmond was the reincarnation of both Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad and Ezio Auditore.   

It was the most protected secret in all of the West Indies Brotherhood that only those close to Ah Tabai and who had lived in Great Inagua for years knew. To all the other Assassins, Desmond Edward Mary Bonny was just a child prodigy that had been taught the Creed since he was a baby. To Ah Tabai and the crew of Anne’s Jackdaw, Desmond was the reincarnation of two of the greatest mentors in all of the Assassin Brotherhood.

Desmond didn’t really know what to do with that huge misunderstanding so he just… didn’t. He didn’t bother to correct them but he also didn’t actively agree with them. 

He was sure that his knowledge of archaic Arabic and Italian (by their standards) didn’t help dissuade their theory. He might no longer be suffering from the Bleeding Effect but he still tended to curse in Italian and Arabic when he got too frustrated or annoyed. Also, they traveled a lot, and sometimes they would talk to someone who understood Arabic or Italian more than English.  

Anne had heard of this reincarnation theory of theirs too but she also didn’t pay it any attention. She had only directly asked him once.

“Little miracle.”

“Yes, mama?”

“Are you the reincarnation of these two dead Assassins they like so much?”

“No, mama.”

“Promise?”

“Promise, mama.”

“Okay then.”

And that had been the end of that.

Anne knew her son wasn’t normal but she just accepted it without any fear. She will always see him as her precious little miracle and, if he happened to know things a child should not know and do things a child should not do, she merely accepted those as something she needed to get used to, like some kind of quid pro quo that the God Almighty had given her child so that he may live.

The good thing about Desmond’s unofficial ‘title’ of being the reincarnation of both Altaïr and Ezio was that he could order the Assassins who knew about it and they would rarely object. That was the main reason why he was able to get two Assassins to keep an eye on the Kenways and let him know if anything changes. It was the only way Desmond could think of to try and keep Haytham from Templar's hands since he couldn’t stay with him every day. 

Desmond wasn’t sure why or how Haytham became a Templar. Haytham’s memories had always been vague, even when he still had the Bleeding Effect, and now he didn’t even have any of them. He vaguely remembered the memories he had relived in the Animus as Haytham but anything else was just blank. Ratonhnhaké:ton’s memories only went as far as the day he threw George Washington’s Apple into the sea so that no man could ever use it. If Ratonhnhaké:ton ever learned about his father’s history, Desmond had no memories of it at all.

And it was becoming harder and harder to see little Haytham as the same cold calculating Grand Master of the Templar Order’s Colonial Rite. Every time Desmond and Anne visited the Kenway Estate, the little boy would always light up and hug Desmond. He was a small child with the same dark hair as his mother (and, strangely enough, Desmond) but with a grin that definitely came from his father. Desmond couldn’t help but think of him as cute with his baby-fat plump cheeks and his habit of following Desmond around like a little baby duckling. Jenny liked to tease Desmond about it, even dryly joking that he should just take her little brother away and let him live on the Jackdaw with Desmond.

Haytham absolutely loved the idea of joining Anne and Desmond and had even begged his parents to give him permission while they were having dinner one night. Edward and Anne just laughed it off while Tessa had looked scandalized by the very notion. Desmond had simply sighed and gave Jenny a wry look while the young lady Scott continued to eat quietly like it wasn’t her fault this had happened in the first place.

Haytham was also a lonely child. Desmond read from Jenny’s letters that he had been forbidden to play with the other children and he was even home-schooled, isolating him even further from the outside world. Jenny assumed it was done so that he wouldn’t hear the persistent gossip about Edward Kenway’s past as a pirate. Jenny didn’t write it but Desmond knew that his and his mother’s regular visits didn’t help those gossip one bit.

Officially, the Jackdaw (although their papers called it The Auditor because Desmond couldn’t help himself and his mother rarely said no to any of his wishes) was a merchant ship under the employ of a high-ranking British Assassin who came from a family of merchants. His mother had to pretend to be a man named Captain Desmond Read because, well, it was the 18th century. Desmond heard from the two Assassins that were watching the Kenways that the Kenway’s neighbors assumed Captain Desmond Read was an old friend of Edward Kenway during his time as a pirate (which, wasn’t exactly wrong) and Anne was Captain Desmond Read’s wife (okay, ew) while Desmond was actually Anne’s child with Edward that they had before she married her current husband (wait, what?) and that she was still having an affair with Edward (Desmond has yet to see any real proof of that one and he and Jenny had been looking) with Tessa’s knowing consent (hahaha, no). 

Desmond thought that was just dumb so he didn’t pay it any attention.

Which came to bite him in the ass when Tessa Kenway had pretty much ordered Edward to make them stop visiting when Desmond was thirteen years old. 

It had been a strange sight, seeing Edward Kenway aboard the Jackdaw that year when they had sailed into port. He had looked devastated but resigned as he tried to explain to Anne why she and her son were now forbidden to even set foot in the Kenway Estate. The gist of it was that Tessa had enough of the gossip that Edward may or may not be cheating on his wife with Anne and Desmond was a product of their affair. Anne had been angry and both men were sure that her shouting could be heard from outside the captain’s cabins. There was nothing going on with her and Edward (that Desmond and Jenny knew of) and her anger had been over the fact that she and her son were being forbidden to see Jenny and Haytham who Anne had grown close to over the years and considered something akin to her own children. 

She had been angry on Desmond’s behalf as well, knowing that her son deeply cared about both of Edward’s children as well. 

Desmond had just remained silent the entire time.

When Anne threw the rum in her cup at Edward’s face and walked out of the cabin, Desmond stayed behind, staring at the floor. 

Edward sat next to him and sighed, “I am truly sorry, lad. I know… I know how much you love Jenny and Haytham.”

Desmond remained quiet, mimicking Altaïr’s posture with his head down and covered by his hood while his hands were in front of him, resting his elbows against his thighs. 

“I…” Edward rubbed his face as he admitted, “I’m truly sorry but I… I already lost one wife. I can’t lose Tessa too.”

Desmond turned his head slightly to look at the older man next to him. Edward looked tired and resigned but the grief was clear on his face.

His eyes looked so old.

They were the eyes of someone who had lost too much and was almost ready to give up.

He would know.

He had seen the same look in Ezio’s eyes once before.

Desmond placed a hand on Edward’s back and patted it twice as he said, “I understand. I’ll… talk to her.”

Edward let out a relieved sigh and he wrapped his arm around Desmond’s shoulder, pulling the younger man towards him. He pressed a brief kiss on the top of Desmond’s head and whispered, “Don’t hesitate to send a message if you need help, alright? No matter what happens, I promise, I will do everything I can to help. You’re family. Both you and Anne. Don’t ever forget that.”

“I know.” Desmond raised his head to stare at him as he asked, “Do you still have that little toy carving I gave you when I was a baby?”

“Aye.” Edward nodded and Desmond couldn’t help but be surprised when the older man hooked his finger under his shirt and pulled a string. Tied to a string was his little toy carving. It was just as Desmond remembered, a little crude carving of what he later realized was supposed to be an Assassin wearing the robes of the Levantine Brotherhood. 

Desmond took out the small knife he always hid in his left boot, the same knife he was using to carve his own little wooden carving in the shape of the Assassin robes Ratonhnhaké:ton had received from Achilles. He carved a few lines on the little wood carving Edward was wearing as a necklace, trying to carve the distinct robes of a Dai. He looked at his work and nodded to himself as he said, “This is Malik Al-Sayf. He was Altaïr’s closest friend and one of the most honorable men I ever knew.”

He let the wooden carving drop, staring at it as it gently hit Edward’s chest. He patted the carving lightly as he whispered, “He’ll keep you safe.”

He leaned forward, resting his forehead against Edward’s forehead as he whispered, “Safety and peace, Edward Kenway.”

Edward left the Jackdaw with the look of a grieving man that day. Anne didn’t even say goodbye to him, staying in front of the ship and staring at nothing in particular with her arms crossed.

All the other crew members of the Jackdaw remained quiet and stayed far away. 

Desmond had been the one to walk Edward off Jackdaw, hugging him before he left.

When he approached his mother after watching Edward leave the docks, the fiery red-haired woman asked in a tone that wasn’t a question but a statement, “You’ll keep an eye on them, yes?”

“Tessa Kenway’s exact words were ‘to not set foot in the estates ever again’.” Desmond reminded her instead of answering. He placed his hands behind him and casually started, “But, then again…”

Desmond turned to face his mother and gave her a grin that looked like Ezio’s charming grin but with the sharpness of Altair’s smug grin, “Nothing is true. Everything is permitted.”

Anne let out a loud burst of laughter and patted her son’s back. Her smile was fond as she said, “You truly are the son of a pirate, my little miracle.”

Desmond continued to grin as he corrected, “I’m the son of one of the most fearsome and wonderful pirates to ever terrorize the seas.”

Anne turned to face the port of London once more as she asked, “You’ll remind them I love them?”

“Always,” Desmond replied solemnly and let his mother rest her head on his shoulder. They watched the people of London go along with their business quietly.

And Desmond plans.

Years 1734 - 1735 - Desmond Edward Mary Bonny (13 - 14 years old)

Desmond had been planning to honor Tessa Kenway’s demand. For a bit. Maybe for half a year or so. 

Jennifer Scott definitely did not. 

If anything, her letters had doubled and she sent the same letters to every port she knew the Jackdaw would usually dock which usually meant he would always have a stack of letters waiting for him in every place they dock, sent to either the Brotherhood’s headquarters in that area or to a known trusted ally of the Brotherhood. He was pretty sure many of the Jackdaw’s crew and the Assassins who received Jenny’s letters were thinking he and Jenny had some kind of forbidden love thing going on. At this point, everyone in the Brotherhood knew about the Kenway-Bonny ‘breakup’ and, while many didn’t actually think that Edward and Anne were having an affair, they were definitely thinking their children had some kind of Romeo-and-Juliet thing going on.

They absolutely did not.

If anything, Jenny seemed to be both Desmond’s best friend and older sister. She wrote to him about what was happening in the estates and Desmond could feel her schadenfreude in her letters as she told him that Haytham had cried all night when he was told that Anne and Desmond weren’t going to visit them anymore. The little boy absolutely did not believe his parents when they told him that it had been Anne and Desmond’s choice. Jenny had even informed him that she absolutely threw oil to the fire by saying it had been their parent’s choice, not Aunt Anne or Desmond’s. 

Desmond’s heart soared but he also felt bad for his uncle when he read that Haytham had told his parents he hated them and refused to talk to them for an entire week. 

Well… it seemed like he needed to do some damage control already. 

Jenny had also stopped being coy about what she may or may not know. Many of her letters have been filled with her frustrations over her father refusing to teach her the ‘family business’ and him being adamant that she marry Reginald Birch.

He remembered Reginald Birch. He had been with the Kenway family when Birch had threatened to kill the man who had tried to rob them when they were celebrating Haytham’s eighth birthday. Desmond didn’t pay him much attention back then but it seemed that he had become a close business associate of Edward’s since that time. 

Just to be sure, Desmond asked one of the Assassins looking after the Kenways to keep a close eye on Birch.          

The Jackdaw didn’t stop docking at London port but Anne and Desmond made sure to not be seen anywhere near the Kenway Estates. Desmond used the rooftops to navigate London and hide from the eyes of the people near the estates. He knew he wasn’t really doing himself any favor with his current outfit but he couldn’t help himself.

Altaïr had worn white robes to blend with the monks and scholars. Ezio had worn white robes to show that an Auditore was still alive and he was coming for them. Desmond mainly wore white hoodies because he found them on sale and he bought about five of them because they were hella cheap and super comfy too. Plus, he liked to think he looked good in white.

Among them, Ratonhnhaké:ton’s Assassin robes would probably have the highest chance of not catching a Londoner’s attention but, well…

Desmond wanted to honor both Altaïr and Ezio too. To feel some kind of connection with them now that he no longer had the Bleeding Effect.

His Assassin robes were cut the same way as the Levantine Brotherhood’s robes but he had it cut by three inches above his knees. He made sure they had pockets on the front so it looked like a fusion of the Levantine Brotherhood’s robes and a modern-day hoodie. He had been the one to try and sew the red lining on his cowled hood, trying to mimic the design of Ezio’s cowled hood when he had been the mentor of the Italian Brotherhood in Rome. 

Desmond wanted to sew the design of the cowl hood of Ezio’s Assassin robes when he had traveled to Masyaf but, from what Desmond could remember, it had been quite detailed and Desmond already had problems trying to sew a simple lining so he had to give up on that. He wore comfortable trousers of the same white hue as his short robes and simple leather boots that were (somewhat) water-resistant. He wore a simple leather belt with the Assassin insignia as a buckle and had copied Ratonhnhaké:ton’s belt, having a flintlock pistol on each side and a pouch at the back. He also had a sword sheath on the left side of his belt and had an actual blacksmith make him a custom sword with an eagle head pommel and wings as the crossguard. There was a space on his right side where he was planning on putting a tomahawk once he ‘finds’ one. He was also on the lookout for a crossbow because he kinda missed Ezio’s crossbow but he wouldn’t mind a longbow instead if he ever found one. Under the belt, he wore two long red sashes. It took a while for him to get the correct red hues and he might have been obsessed about it a bit. The sash that was wrapped around his waist had the same vibrant hue as the red inner lining of Ezio’s robes when he was in Rome while the longer sash that fell up to his knee was the same dark red hue as Altaïr’s sash. To help him blend in, he wore a coat over his Assassin outfit, using a captain coat his mother got him that looked a lot like the captain coat Ratonhnhaké:ton wore when he sailed the Aquila. Desmond had to barter with merchants who had been to Constantinople to get the correct dye (which may or may not have dented his pickpocketing funds) but he managed to dye the entire coat to the same color as Ezio’s gray robes when he had traveled to Masyaf. He had been tempted to find some kind of fur to add to its left shoulder but that was a bit too much and would just make his coat more noticeable.

In other words, Desmond was just too proud of all the hard work he had to do to get his entire outfit just the way he wanted it to look so he was going to wear it no matter what, damn it.     

Thankfully, Haytham’s bedroom was on the first floor. All Desmond had to do was sit under the window and he’d be hidden by the bushes.

It was kinda disturbing creeping into the Kenway Estates in the middle of the night to visit a little boy. 

Okay.

It was definitely disturbing but Desmond was just going to ignore that.

He slowly raised his head until his eyes were just above the bottom window sill. Haytham was writing on his desk and the entire room was lit by a single gas lamp only.

Desmond knocked on the window as gently as he could and Haytham slowly turned in his direction, his eyes widening when Desmond waved at him. 

The little boy ran towards the window and opened the window as he exclaimed, “Desmond! You came back!”

“Ssshh.” Desmond gently shushed the boy before whispering, “We promised Tessa we won’t enter the estates. Technically, I’m just outside so I’m keeping my promise.”

Haytham tilted his head as he whispered back, “I think the garden counts as part of the estates?”

“Eh.” Desmond shrugged, “Probably but you won’t tell anyone, right?”

“No, of course not!” Haytham whispered, “It’ll be our secret.”

“Pinky promise?” Desmond asked with a grin, offering his left hand with his pinky finger raised.

“Mmhm!” Haytham nodded with a grin, hooking his little pinky finger over Desmond and they shook on it.

Desmond sat on the ground and rested his back against the wall while Haytham dragged his chair towards the window so he could sit on it while he rested his arms on the bottom window sill before resting his chin on his right arm. Desmond and Haytham watched the nightly sky as Haytham asked, “You’ll keep visiting me, right?”

“As often as I can.” Desmond promised, “We changed our ship’s route. We should be able to dock here every five or six months.”

“And you’ll stay for a few days each time?” 

“Maybe a week or two.” He answered, grinning as he patted the boy’s hair, “And I’ll visit you every night.”

“Good.” Haytham sighed as he admitted, “I wish I could stay with you and Aunt Anne. It’s boring here. Just studying every day and learning swordsmanship with father…”

“Uncle Eddie teaching you to use a sword?” Desmond asked with a slight frown, “Did he say why?”

“He didn’t say.” Haytham answered, “Father has been asking me strange questions… He said he wants me to think for myself and question everyone's opinions.”

“Oh.” Desmond blinked.

Edward had been teaching Haytham the Creed without actually explaining it?

What?

“Desmond?” Haytham called out curiously.

Desmond leaned forward and turned around to look at Haytham. He stared at the innocent boy in front of him and wondered what he should do.

Something happened in Haytham’s life that turned him into a Templar and Desmond didn’t know what it was. It was possible Haytham became a Templar out of his own free will later in his life but Desmond would have assumed Ratonhnhaké:ton would have heard his father was an Assassin before he was a Templar. That kind of thing was important enough to be mentioned at least once.

Without knowing why Haytham had become a Templar, Desmond was at a loss of what he should do with the knowledge that Edward had been teaching Haytham how to be an Assassin. He finally realized what Jenny had hinted on in her letters and why she had been so angry with her father. She wanted to be an Assassin and she knew what it meant to be one. On the other hand, Haytham was being trained to be an Assassin without even knowing what it meant to be one.

In some strange way, Haytham had a similar childhood to both Ezio Auditore and Desmond Miles.

Desmond leaned closer and whispered softly, “I’m going to tell you something very, very important. It’s a secret of mine that I haven’t told anyone before.”

Haytham’s eyes widened but he remained silent, listening as the older boy said, “You must promise never to tell anyone, Haytham. Not Uncle Eddie, not Jenny, not anyone.”

“I promise,” Haytham whispered softly, lips curving into a small smile when Desmond ruffled his head once more.

“I trust you, Haytham.” Desmond whispered back before he admitted in a soft whisper, “My ancestors were Assassins.”

That night and the rest of the week he was in London, Desmond told Haytham about Altaïr and his mission to regain his rank as a Master Assassin in the Levantine Brotherhood.

The next time he was in London, Desmond told Haytham about Ezio and his quest to avenge the injustice the Auditore family had endured.

On his next visits, Desmond explained to Haytham what the Brotherhood was meant to represent, their Creed, and their tenets. 

In March of the year 1735, Desmond made sure they dock in London on his birthday. After spending a wonderful simple dinner with his mother, he visited the Kenway Estates under the cover of the night.

“Happy birthday, Desmond,” Haytham whispered as he gave him a small box. Desmond took it and tilted his head. Haytham grinned as he whispered, “Jenny helped me pick it.”

He blinked at that. He knew Haytham and Jenny weren’t close and Edward’s constant refusal to train Jenny to be an Assassin had put a strain on their relationship. He was also pretty sure Haytham didn’t realize it and only assumed his older sister was being her usual distant scowling self. Desmond opened the box and saw a long piece of red ribbon. Haytham grinned as he showed his own red ribbon tying his hair into a low ponytail as he explained, “I told Jenny how you wear those red sashes on your waist as a tribute to your ancestors. I thought it would be nice if we had something that shows we’re family too.”

It looked a bit ridiculous as his hair was barely long enough to tie and the ribbon was so much longer than his hair but it only made Haytham look all the cuter.      

Desmond’s face softened.

He didn’t even have the heart to tell Haytham that he didn’t enjoy having hair as long as Ezio’s when he had been a teenager but his mother had loved combing his hair every night so he kept it. 

He tied the red ribbon over his simple hair tie, showing it to the little boy who looked so happy as he said, “Now, we match!”

Desmond chuckled and ruffled Haytham’s hair as he said, “Yes, we do.”

When Desmond returned to Jackdaw later, the crew complimented his new hair tie, commenting how it had the exact same hue as his mother’s hair.

Desmond would later find out that Jenny was wearing the same red ribbon in her hair as well. 

December 1735 - Desmond Edward Mary Bonny (14 years old)

Desmond received a letter from Jenny in the middle of November. It only had one line written in it.

“Reginald Birch is a Templar.” 

Desmond’s blood went cold at those words and the Jackdaw immediately sailed for London.

They reached London in the afternoon of December 3, 1735, but it took a while to dock. Too long for Desmond’s comfort and he was almost tempted to just jump off the ship and swim towards the dock instead. His mother had to calm him down even though he knew that she was just as worried as he was.

How did they not realize that someone so close to Edward had been a Templar?

Now that he thought about it, didn’t Tessa start to become a lot colder a few years after they met Birch?

Were they connected?

When he finally docked, Desmond immediately went straight to the Kenway Estates, using the rooftops for a faster and more optimized route, while his mother went to the main headquarters of the British Brotherhood in London to coordinate with the high-ranking members of the British Brotherhood.

When he saw the bodies of guards in front of the estate’s gates, Desmond was afraid he had been too late.

Then he heard the sounds of steel hitting steel inside and Desmond didn’t hesitate, running inside towards the sound.

He reached the main living room in time to see Edward go on his knees, gripping his right hand that was bleeding furiously, as two armed men approached him. He barely heard Tessa screaming as she was grabbed by the hair by another man. He barely saw the corpse of one of the Assassins he had ordered to keep an eye on the estates, just a few feet away from Edward.

Desmond’s body moved on its own, jumping the man on Edward’s left. His hidden blade sank the man’s neck from the back, managing to not hit the man’s spine but delivering a devastating killing blow regardless. His sudden attack surprised the other man and Desmond didn’t waste any time, firing one of his flintlock pistols and hitting the other man in the stomach. The man screamed in pain as he fell to the ground.

Tessa’s scream was louder than the gunshot and Desmond immediately dropped his flintlock pistol and drew his other one. He didn’t fire though when he realized that Tessa had screamed because Haytham had taken the dead Assassin’s sword and had stabbed the man that had been holding Tessa by the hair. The boy’s eyes were wide and his hands were trembling as he stood in front of his mother, drenched in the blood of the first man he had ever killed.

“Haytham-”

“FATHER! DESMOND!” 

The ear-piercing scream had Desmond running out of the estates immediately while Edward tried to stand but fell on his knees in pain. With blood dripping from his right arm, Edward stubbornly tried to crawl as he shouted, “Jenny!”      

Desmond ran out of the estate and chased after the carriage where Jenny was trying to get out using the window. Desmond tried to fire at one of the wheels but missed, throwing his flintlock pistol as he forced his legs to run faster than he had ever run before. 

He reached out his hand towards Jenny who tried to reach out as well as hands grabbed her by the shoulders, trying to pull her inside, and their fingers touched.

But Desmond knew he wouldn’t make it.

And the expression on Jenny’s face told him that she knew it too.

“Desmond…” She sobbed, tears falling from her face.

Still, Desmond persisted. With a loud yell, Desmond forced his legs to run faster, to just give him enough strength to reach her.

Just as he was about to grab her hand…

They heard a loud bang and Desmond fell to the ground as a burning pain erupted from his shoulder. 

“DESMOND!!!” Jenny screamed and Desmond barely saw the smoking barrel of a pistol coming from in front of the carriage.

“I’ll find you, Jenny!” Desmond promised as loud as he could and he stubbornly got up, trying to stop the bleeding on his left shoulder with his other hand as he shouted, “I promise! I'll find you! Wait for me!” 

He watched the carriage as it became smaller and smaller, losing too much blood and slowly losing consciousness.

His mother and five members of the British Brotherhood found him three minutes later, bleeding on the street with his eyes closed, still on his knees.

Desmond lost a bit of blood but he was still good enough to visit the Kenway Estates the following day. He had been advised to not do any strenuous activities for a few months though which he would… try to honor. Members of the British Assassins were everywhere inside the Kenway Estates, checking every room and reading every single piece of paper in the estates, looking for any clues on where they had taken Jenny and where Birch could now be hiding. Desmond ignored them and went to the hidden basement. He just entered the room where the entrance was and he was already hearing Tessa shouting about how Edward had lied to her, how this entire thing wouldn’t have happened had he not been an Assassin.

Desmond quietly walked down, seeing Tessa scream at Edward while Anne stayed a bit far away from them, rubbing Haytham’s back as he stared at the floor with a doll-like expression on his face.

Desmond stared at Edward, his heart aching when he saw his uncle’s bandaged limp right arm. He had heard that the damage to his right arm had been too much and they needed to keep an eye on it. They fear that Edward would be unable to move it ever again.

Jesus.

He wondered if he accidentally cursed Edward by giving him his Malik wood carving. It just seemed to be too much of a coincidence that Edward would suffer a similar injury. 

It was honestly a small consolation that the Assassin that died yesterday had helped, pushing Edward out of the way from an incoming attack that would have pierced his heart. The Assassin had taken the hit for the older man, sacrificing his life to keep Edward alive just long enough for Desmond to get there.

The other Assassin Desmond had ordered to keep an eye on the estates had run to request help when they saw the five thugs kill the guards. That was why Anne and the other British Assassins had been able to get to the estates quicker than they should have. The other British Assassins had already been on their way to the estates and Anne had managed to meet up with them on her way to their headquarters.

Desmond couldn’t help but wonder if it would have made a difference if his mother had come with him to the estates in the first place. 

But that wasn’t important at the moment.

Because Tessa had started to scream at both Desmond and Anne to get out, to leave, and never come back. Just when she started to scream for the other Assassins to leave, her screams stopped abruptly and she began to cough violently.

Edward tried to calm her down but she refused to relent until he and his mother left. Reluctantly, they started to leave but Desmond stopped when he felt Haytham grab his hand.

Desmond knelt in front of the little boy and promised, “I’ll find Jenny, I promise. I’ll come see you soon, okay?”

“I want to come with you,” Haytham said in a monotone voice.

“Haytham…” Edward took a step towards his son.

“Take him. We don’t need a killer in our house.” Tessa said coldly, making Edward flinch and both Bonny’s eyes widened.

“How dare you…” Anne took a step towards her but her son beat her to it. 

“He's your son!” Desmond shouted angrily, glaring at Tessa. He took a step towards her as he shouted, “He was trying to protect you and-”

“Desmond.” Haytham quietly called out, tightening his grip on Desmond’s hand. He continued to stare at the floor as he said, “It's okay.” 

“Haytham.” Desmond turned toward the young boy. 

“Please.” The dark-haired boy’s voice was monotone as he requested, “Take me with you.” 

Desmond turned to look at Edward and saw the man’s grief-stricken face. The older Kenway nodded at Desmond as he begged brokenly, “Take care of my son.”

Desmond could only nod as he replied, “Okay.” 

Haytham stayed quiet, gripping Desmond’s hand tightly, as they waited for his nursemaid Edith to quickly pack his luggage. It took an hour at most for the poor woman to finish packing and some of the servants of the Kenways placed the pieces of luggage inside a carriage that Desmond and Anne would be using to return to the docks. Edward was also by the carriage, ordering the servants to get certain items that he wanted Desmond and Anne to bring to the Jackdaw. 

When he saw his son walking towards him, hand tightly holding Desmond’s, Haytham continued to stare at the ground even after Edward had knelt in front of him. 

“I'm so sorry, son,” Edward whispered as tears fell from his eyes. He hesitated for a moment before placing a hand on his son’s shoulder, “I have to stay here with your mother. She’s… she’s not well at the moment and…”

Edward stopped and stared at this son. The older Kenway took off the necklace that held Desmond’s wooden carving and placed it over his son’s head as he whispered, “I can’t be with you but this little guy will look out for you in my stead. He’ll… he’ll keep you safe like he kept me safe yesterday.”

Edward placed his hand on his son’s cheek. He stared at Haytham as he said, “I love you. Never forget that, Haytham. Whatever happens, whatever you do or whoever you become, you will always be my son and I will always love you.”

Edward wrapped his arm around his son as he repeated in an almost broken tone, “You will always be my son.” 

Haytham remained quiet but he let go of Desmond’s hand. He wrapped his arms around his father’s neck and embraced him tightly. Edward rested his head on his son’s shoulder and cried silently as he held his son with his only working arm. 

Haytham E. Kenway left the Kenway Estates on December 4, 1735, joining the crew of Jackdaw. He would never return to the Kenway Estates ever again. 

Years 1735 - 1740 - Desmond Edward Mary Bonny (14 - 19 years old)

For the next five years, Anne Bonny and Desmond Edward Mary Bonny looked for any clues on where Jennifer Scott could have been taken. Ah Tabai had given them permission to focus on locating Jenny as long as they provide assistance to any Assassin branches or Brotherhood they encountered which they agreed to. The British Brotherhood focused their efforts on finding Reginald Birch who had gone missing the day after the attack on the Kenway Estates. When the British Brotherhood checked his home, they concluded that someone had tipped him off that the attack had been unsuccessful and it seemed he had left in a hurry. Edward Kenway’s arm did not recover but the doctor assured them there was no need to cut it off (Desmond sighed in relief when he read that, he wasn’t sure if he could take the guilt of accidentally giving Edward the Malik curse then winced and asked forgiveness in his mind to Malik for thinking like that) and the older Kenway had been forbidden in taking any on-field missions. This gave him ample time to assist other Assassins and write letters to the Bonnys and his son which he did diligently. 

It wasn’t surprising to receive a stack of letters whenever they reached a well-known and well-secured Assassin Branch. With the constant letters back and forth between Edward and Anne (Desmond also wrote some but not as frequently as his mother), Edward would always have an idea of where to send the next sets of letters and an instruction on where the letters could be forwarded to if it had missed them. By this point, the Assassins who received Edward Kenway’s letter knew beforehand that they would be visited by the Jackdaw which always helped since that gave the Assassins ample time to prepare for their visits by checking possible rumors that may be connected to Jenny, preparing supplies the Jackdaw might need, and even listing down any requests they would like to make for their traveling brothers.

While Anne and Edward kept a regular correspondence with one another and Desmond tried to write as often as he could, Haytham never wrote a single letter to either of his parents nor did he receive any letter from his mother. That didn’t deter Edward at all as every time they received a stack of letters from Edward, most of these letters were meant for Haytham. Desmond had been worried at first but he noticed soon enough that Haytham read every letter and kept them all in a small chest Anne had bought for him on the next port they docked after leaving London. Desmond hadn’t planned on eavesdropping but he had been on his way to the deck when he heard his mother’s voice coming from Haytham’s room.

“Every pirate has their own chest.” Anne had explained as the boy silently stared at the small chest in his lap, “I gave my son his first chest when he was but a wee little baby. It’s inside his current chest now and…”

Anne leaned forward and whispered, “He doesn’t think I know but that small chest is filled with the little wood carvings and other toys he received from the people of Great Inagua.”

Desmond did, in fact, know his mother knew about what was inside his first chest. He had deliberately filled it with all the things he received from the people of Great Inagua before he left with his mother to sail the seas in the Jackdaw. He couldn’t leave them. They were a symbol of how his childhood in Great Inagua, as strange as it was with Ah Tabai’s interest in him and the Assassins’ general weirdness, was the happiest childhood he had ever had. 

Although he kept his wood carvings of Altaïr, Ezio, and Ratonhnhaké:ton inside his pouch like the sentimental idiot that he was. 

Haytham didn’t say anything but his lips twitched for just a second. Anne smiled gently and caressed the boy’s hair, “You’re one of us now, Haytham, and we Bonnys will always be pirates. And every pirate has to have a treasure chest.”

She kissed the boy’s temple and whispered, “Fill it with whatever treasure you want, Haytham. Whether they’re trinkets from your past that give you warmth and joy or random things you find during our travels. You get to decide the treasures you keep.” 

Desmond wasn’t sure what other things Haytham kept in his little chest but he was certain that each letter his father sent to him was read and placed inside soon after.  

During their travels, Haytham Kenway became Desmond’s official apprentice, and any free time they had, Desmond would be teaching Haytham the ways of an Assassin, focusing on both the Levantine Brotherhood training Altaïr had done in his youth and the training Ezio implemented for his students. Many of the crew members of the Jackdaw liked to join in the training when they were free, interested in the unique way Desmond trained Haytham. 

Their favorite had been Desmond making them sit with their legs crossed and their eyes closed while he asked them what they hear and what they feel.

Every time Desmond would ask them what they saw, it left them stumped because they had been instructed to keep their eyes closed. 

Except for Haytham.

It took a lot of tries but after years of the same meditative-like practice, they realized that they could use the Eagle Vision like Desmond and Haytham. It wasn’t as advanced as Desmond’s or Haytham’s and they could only use it if they focused really hard and only for like two or three seconds but Desmond assured them it would develop as long as they continue to use it. 

Everyone had been excited but Desmond had been the most excited of all.

He didn’t even know it would trigger their Eagle Vision.

He had honestly started to make Haytham do the Levantine Brotherhood’s meditation as a way to try and calm the boy down. After a few days of being an unresponsive doll, Haytham snapped out of it after seeing the steel sword Edward had packed for him and demanded that Desmond train him to be an Assassin. Desmond wasn’t going to lie, he felt smugness and amusement over the fact that one of the most well-known Grand Masters in the history of the Templar Order wanted to be an Assassin and he was asking Desmond to train him. The fact that this made him the (unofficial) mentor of the Jackdaw Brotherhood (no, seriously, Desmond had heard the crew call themselves that) was just the icing on this ironic cake.

It only took a day for Desmond to see that Haytham was filled with anger and pain, all rolled up and hiding behind his calm demeanor.

It… actually reminded Desmond a lot of Ratonhnhaké:ton.

He had hoped that the meditation that the Levantine Brotherhood would use (and Altaïr would habitually do) would help him chill. He had repeated the same questions Altaïr used to hear when he had been a child because he noticed that Haytham was getting bored and irritated just sitting on the floor with his eyes closed.

… He didn’t know it was the Levantine Brotherhood’s main way of training the novices’ Eagle Vision. 

He blamed Altaïr. All his knowledge about the Levantine Brotherhood came from his Syrian ancestor. Desmond not knowing that it had been connected to unlocking and training the Eagle Vision was totally because of Altaïr.

Other than the accidental training Desmond had unintentionally created, Haytham was a quick study. He also liked to question every single thing Desmond tells him. 

Desmond tried talking about the history of the Levantine Brotherhood under Altaïr (which brought the awe of the other crew members of the Jackdaw and even his mother had listened attentively as he recounted the many advancements Altaïr brought to the Brotherhood during his time as the mentor), Haytham pointed out how stupid it was that the supposed mentor of the Brotherhood would try to assassinate Genghis Khan when he was already in his 60s. Desmond had been offended for his ancestor’s sake and it became a long debate about whether the leader of a large organization should still take field missions. When Desmond tried to use Ezio’s journey to Masyaf as an example, Haytham had retorted that it sounded more like Ezio had abandoned his post as the mentor to seek some kind of personal mission to satisfy himself. 

That was the day everyone aboard the Jackdaw realized that it was a bad idea to badmouth Altaïr or Ezio in the presence of their (unofficial) captain and mentor. Haytham had only been surprised by how emotional the usually calm Desmond had become in defending both Altaïr and Ezio. 

And Haytham liked it.

Desmond tried talking about Ezio destroying the Templar Order in Italy, Haytham asked why Ezio let Rodrigo Borgia live. When Desmond explained how Ezio no longer wanted to be chained by the suffocating desire for revenge, Haytham didn’t agree with his actions, noting that by letting Rodrigo Borgia live, Ezio had unintentionally only made the Borgia stronger and it could even be argued that letting Rodrigo leave caused the death of his uncle later on. This led to a long discussion about the pros and cons of revenge.

Haytham even used Altaïr against Desmond, reminding him that he once told Haytham about how the old Syrian had killed Abbas later on. When Desmond reminded him that Altaïr had killed Abbas to save the Levantine Brotherhood, Haytham just looked at him with a disbelieving bored stare, obviously not believing the crap Desmond just said. Desmond pretended not to see Haytham’s expression which only made the young teenager sigh and shake his head, already used to the lack of objectivity Desmond had when it came to any discussions about Altaïr and Ezio.

On the other hand, Haytham always grew quiet and focused when their lessons involved the different skills an Assassin had to have. Haytham had an easy time learning any combat skills Desmond taught him. Lockpicking was also easy for him. He did have a hard time blending in though, mostly because he had a slight aversion to being close to people he didn’t know. 

Desmond didn’t push it but he could see Haytham was getting annoyed at himself for having problems with blending in. When he told Haytham that he needed to relax and take his time, his mother had raised an eyebrow at him, having remembered how he had done a similar thing before and he had been much, much younger than Haytham was at the moment. 

Desmond elected to ignore his mother’s amused but judgemental stare.

It took five long years before they finally found out that Jenny had been sold into the harem of Topkapi Palace in Constantinople. Desmond remembered Topkapi Palace from Ezio’s memories and used it as his guide in planning how to get into the palace. He also used Altaïr’s archaic Arabic (with a bit of Ezio’s own slightly less-archaic Arabic) to coordinate with the Ottoman Brotherhood. It seemed that his ‘reputations’ had reached even Constantinople which Desmond wasn’t sure how to feel about. Ah Tabai’s Assassin Brotherhood had begun to spread out around seven years ago and they brought with them stories of the boy blessed with the wisdom of Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad and Ezio Auditore. 

So much for that reincarnation theory being a well-protected secret…

If they didn’t hear about him from the Assassins who saw him grow up in Great Inagua, they would hear about him as the young captain of the Jackdaw, son of a famous pirate and the successor of Edward Kenway. Many even mistook him as Edward Kenway’s actual son which just amused Anne and Haytham.

Desmond usually just ignored it but it was harder to ignore it when the entire Ottoman Brotherhood preferred to call him Master Ibn-La'Ahad the entire time he was in Constantinople. Haytham, who accompanied him, had been surprised when Desmond didn’t have that usual moment of confusion people had whenever they would be called by the wrong name. Instead, he had simply replied with “Safety and peace, brothers.” in the archaic Arabic that Haytham was getting better at. The Ottoman Brotherhood had been amused when Haytham was introduced and seemed to either be confused by his last name or just decided to call him Haytham Ibn-La'Ahad. 

Haytham followed his mentor’s usual tactic and just rolled with it. 

Infiltrating the palace had been as easy as Desmond predicted. Many years may have passed but Ezio’s memories (even though they were a bit vague) were enough of a guide that Desmond was able to slip inside undetected. It was only him infiltrating the palace while Haytham and some of the Ottoman Assassins surrounded the perimeter of the palace from both the rooftops and the streets, ready to provide backup or a distraction if needed.

Which Desmond didn’t need in the end.

He managed to find Jenny in one of the many rooms of the palace’s harem. She was the only one glowing vibrant blue in a sea of whites and reds. 

When he slipped inside the room where she had secluded herself, she turned around, a cup already in her hand and she looked ready to throw it. Her eyes widened as she recognized him, “Desmond?”

“Hey, Jenny.” Desmond gave her an apologetic smile as he said, “I’m sorry it took too long to-”

Desmond’s words turned into a surprised squeak when Jenny threw herself at him, arms wrapping around his neck as she whispered, “I knew you’d come. I always… I…”

Desmond held her in his arms as she began to cry quietly. He caressed her hair, noting a familiar red ribbon tying her hair into a low ponytail. He pressed a soft kiss on her temple and whispered, “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

“Okay.” Jenny nodded and let go of him. She quickly rubbed the tears away from her face and took a deep breath before nodding at Desmond once more with a look of determination etched across her face. 

“Follow me,” Desmond said before pausing. He took out the small dagger he hid on the inside of his boot and handed it to Jenny.    

Seeing the glint in her eyes that reminded Desmond of Haytham’s hidden rage, he stressed, “Only use it to defend yourself. Okay?”

Jenny stared at him for a few moments before nodding, “Okay.”

He held Jenny’s other hand and, using his Eagle Vision to make sure they remained unseen, Desmond led Jenny out of the palace.

The palace didn’t know Jenny was gone until the following day.

The Ottoman Assassins had offered for Desmond to stay in Constantinople for a while which he was honestly super tempted to accept as Constantinople, as different as it was now, brought a sense of nostalgia to Desmond but it would be better for Jenny if she left this place as soon as possible and there was no way Anne would leave Desmond in Constantinople alone, even if Desmond insisted it. 

He took the time to pay his respect to Yusuf by leaving some flowers where Sofia’s bookstore had been before boarding the Jackdaw and leaving Constantinople. 

He couldn’t help himself though and sailed them to Acre. He left her mother in charge of the ship and asked her to let Jenny help, hoping doing something would help her in some way as it seemed to be doing to Haytham, while he and Haytham traveled to Masyaf. 

Masyaf fortress was as deserted and left to ruin as he remembered from Ezio’s memories. Haytham looked like he wanted to comment about it but the look of naked anguish on Desmond’s face kept his lips sealed. The young boy followed Desmond as they walked inside Masyaf fortress, remaining quiet as Desmond led them deeper into the tunnels underneath the fortress. 

The doors leading to Altaïr’s library were wide open and Desmond couldn’t help but let out a small sob as he ran inside, surprising Haytham enough for him to simply do nothing but stare at the young man for a few seconds before running after him.

Haytham entered the dark library cautiously, looking around the empty room before his eyes landed on one corner of the room where Desmond was on his knees, tears falling from his face as he gently held a skull in his hands.  

“Desmond?” Haytham asked softly, unsure if he should approach the young man right now.

Desmond caressed the skull as he said, “They just… they just left him here. They took the Apple and just… just…”

Desmond held the skull in his arms as he cried softly. Haytham stared at him for a moment before walking toward him. He knelt next to Desmond and placed a comforting hand on the older man’s shoulder, letting him cry silently for as long as he needed. 

Haytham couldn’t be sure how long they sat there but, without saying a single word Desmond started to gather the bones and Haytham helped, wrapping them inside the dusty robes that Desmond held with care. They left Masyaf fortress and buried the bones by a tree with a clear view of the fortress just outside of Masyaf. 

Haytham wasn’t sure if they should pray or something so he just let Desmond place one of his favorite wooden carvings on top of the grave. Desmond knelt in front of the grave as he whispered in archaic Arabic, “I promise I’ll find where they took your Apple and protect it. I won’t let the Templars use it ever again.”

Desmond closed his eyes as he whispered, “ Requiescat in pace , Altaïr. I…” 

Desmond paused for a moment and opened his eyes, lips curving into a small smile as he stared at the little wooden carving, “Thank you for everything.”

They left Masyaf soon after and returned to Acre where both Jenny and Anne were waiting for them. Anne looked at her son for a moment and her face softened as she whispered, “Oh, Desmond.”

Desmond let his mother hold him in her arms and rested his head on her shoulder. She rubbed his back gently as he whispered, “I’m okay, mama. Just… I just need some time.”

“Take all the time you need, my little miracle.”

The day after Desmond and Haytham returned from Masyaf, they set sail for England after the Assassins stationed in Acre informed Desmond (who they also called Master Ibn-La'Ahad) that they had records of British soldiers leading a small secret excavation team in Masyaf fortress centuries ago. That was enough reason for Desmond to set sail to London. 

When Jenny stood next to him while he was teaching Haytham how to properly use the helm (which will hopefully stop him from being a backseat driver later down the road, Ratonhnhaké:ton seriously didn’t need to hear all of his complaints and commentaries), Desmond kept his eyes on Haytham as he asked, “Do you still want to be an Assassin, Jenny?”

Jenny and Haytham both stared at him with wide eyes and Desmond gently chided, “Don’t slacken your grip, Haytham.”

“Yes, sir.” Haytham immediately replied, focusing his attention back on what he was supposed to do. Desmond knew that the young teenager was listening in and he didn’t mind.

Being able to listen to conversations while doing something important was a necessary skill each Assassin should have anyway.

“I do.” Jenny replied, gripping the fabrics of her black trousers as she proclaimed, “I refuse to return to London.”

“I…” Jenny’s eyes darkened as she said, “Reginald Birch must pay.”

“That’s good enough for me.” Desmond shrugged, “We’re not going to London to send you back to the Kenway Estates anyway. I’m looking for something that belongs to…”

Desmond paused for a moment before continuing, “Someone important to me.”

Jenny stared at him silently and Desmond just waved his hand dismissively, “Don’t know if you’ll get a chance to kill Birch though. He’s pretty much the British Brotherhood’s number one ‘kill on sight’ target at the moment. But mother and I can teach you how to be an Assassin.”

Desmond stared at her as he added, “Of course, that would mean that you must adhere to our Creed and to the three tenets. We’re not killers out to satisfy our own desires, Jenny.”

Desmond ignored Haytham’s cough that sounded a lot like ‘Ezio’.

“We work in the dark to serve the light,” Desmond repeated the same words spoken during every initiation Ezio and Altaïr had ever conducted. He stared at her as he said, “If you truly want to be an Assassin, we will guide you and train you but you have to be sure. We do not live a kind life.”

“Becoming an Assassin… becoming like father and aunt…” Jenny took a step towards Desmond and said with clear eyes, “It’s what I wanted to be ever since. Even before Birch, before… everything happened. I want to be an Assassin like father and aunt. I want… I want to be an Assassin like you, Desmond.”

“Okay then.” Desmond grinned as he said, “As of this moment, you will be my novice as well. Novice Kenway, say hello to your fellow novice.”

“I am still a novice?!” Haytham spluttered indignantly, making Desmond laugh. Seeing the man walking away from him and his sister, he shouted, “Desmond! Get back here! I demand an explanation as to why I am still ranked as a novice!” 

Instead of listening to his demands, Desmond just laughed once more.

As they were docking at the port of London, Haytham, Jenny, and Anne stayed near the helm with Desmond, just staring at the city ahead of them.

“Do you hate… our parents?” Haytham asked and everyone could hear the hesitation he tried to hide in his voice. 

Jenny paused and twisted the long red ribbon tying her hair into a low ponytail with her finger. Desmond wasn’t sure if it had been a habit he never noticed before or if it was some kind of coping mechanism Jenny had developed during her time in Constantinople but she tended to twist the red ribbon on her hair whenever she became thoughtful, “I… I don’t hate our father. I think he’s stupid but I…” 

Jenny closed her eyes as she said, “I heard him scream my name that day… I knew… I knew he tried to save me. I never doubted he loves me and I… I will always be proud to call myself Edward Kenway’s daughter.”

“Tessa though…” Jenny opened her eyes and admitted without a hint of remorse, “… I don't care about her. As far as I know, all I have is an annoying little brother and a stupid father.” 

“Oh.” Haytham let out a soft sigh at her words and whispered, “I… Thank you, Jenny.”

“Haytham…” Jenny kept her eyes on the city in front of them, “Thank you for coming for me.”

“Father would have come get you himself if he could.” Haytham whispered, “I… I was just following Desmond.”

“Of course, you were,” Jenny said as she rolled her eyes but the fondness was clear in her voice. She turned to face Anne and admitted with a small smile, “I wish you were my stepmother, Aunt Anne.”

Anne’s eyes softened and she grabbed both Kenway children (they would always be children in her eyes) and kissed their temple before whispering, “As far as I’m concerned, the two of you are my children.”

Anne’s eyes held a mischievous glint in them as she admitted, “Although, it is true that Edward and I had a thing before. Who knows, had God been kinder, I could have been your stepmother instead.”

She sighed softly as she smiled sadly, “Unfortunately, sometimes loving someone is not enough to stay with them.” 

“I knew it!” Jenny shouted before ordering Desmond, “Pay up! I won!”

“What?” Desmond looked at her with confusion, having no memories of ever making a bet with her. Hell, Desmond made sure to only make bets when he was sure to win. 

“You told me ‘I bet you a hundred bucks they’re not together’. I want my hundred bucks, whatever that means.” Jenny said haughtily, making Anne laugh, and Haytham stare at them with a small smile on his face.

Haytham’s smile grew when he saw Desmond stare at his sister with a gaping mouth.

“I was six!” Desmond exclaimed, finally remembering what the older woman was talking about, “Jesus, Jenny! That was a joke!”

“I don’t care. I want my hundred bucks.” Jenny reiterated, making Desmond groan.

“Aunt Anne.” Haytham turned to look at the red-haired woman watching the two with an amused smile on her face.

“Yes, dear?”

“Did you have an affair with our father when he was married?” Haytham asked for clarification, making both Desmond and Jenny turn towards her.

Anne laughed and shook her head, “Heaven’s no. I will never be someone’s mistress, even for Edward Kenway. We used to sleep around when we were in Nassau, maybe… around 1719 or 1720?”

“Hah!” Desmond cheered and grinned at Jenny, “That means I was right! The bet was if they were together when Edward was married!”

“Oh now you did make a bet!” Jenny commented sarcastically as she crossed her arms.

“Wait. 1720 would mean the year before Desmond was born…” Haytham remembered as his eyes widened. Both Jenny and Desmond also went quiet, staring at Anne with wide eyes. 

“Is it possible Desmond’s father is…” Haytham didn’t finish his sentence as all three just continued to stare at Anne. 

The red-haired woman simply gave them a shrug with a smile on her face before walking towards the front of the ship. 

“Wait. What?!” Desmond shouted at the retreating form of his mother as he was unable to leave the helm unattended, “Mama! Am I a Kenway?! Mama!!” 

Anne laughed loudly and didn’t bother to look back as she finally replied, “No, my little miracle, your father was a drunk idiot.”

They watch her walk away in silence as the Jackdaw begins to prepare for docking, the loud commands of Anne being done without any complaints by the rest of the crew members.

It was Jenny who remarked, “That wasn’t really an answer, not really. Father was also known to be a drunk idiot when he was a pirate.” 

Desmond continued to keep the Jackdaw steady as he mumbled, “I… might be a Kenway.”

Jenny stared at him for a moment before casually saying, “We should just change our names.”

“Why?” Desmond frowned at that as he stared at the woman next to him.

“At this point, Aunt Anne has been more of a mother to us all than Tessa has ever been.” Jenny narrowed her eyes as she added, “And I’m not just talking about the time we have spent on this ship. Even when I was growing up, I’ve always liked her more than Tessa.”

“I’d like to be called Haytham Bonny-Kenway.” Haytham casually just dropped that bomb on Desmond, making Desmond stare at him with an open mouth.

“Then it’s decided. I will be Jenny Bonny-Scott.” Jenny announced with a nod that just signaled the finality of this conversation.

They both stared at Desmond who paled.

“Oh no.” Desmond shook his head, “Do you guys not remember how long my name is already? There’s no way I’m going to introduce myself as Desmond Edward Mary Kenway-Bonny ever.” 

“Kenway-Scott-Bonny.” Both Haytham and Jenny corrected which only made Desmond groan once more.

“No.” Desmond repeated, “Just… no.”

From the look the two gave him, Desmond just knew this conversation was far from over.

Years 1740 - 1741 - Desmond Edward Mary (sigh) Kenway-Scott-Bonny (19 - 20 years old)

When they reached the port of London, an Assassin from the British Brotherhood (the very same Assassin that Desmond requested to keep an eye on the Kenways years back) came aboard and gave a huge stack of letters to them, all from Edward Kenway. Almost three-fourths of the stacks had been for Haytham while an actual bag filled with letters was all addressed to Jenny. It seemed that for the past five years, Edward had been writing letters to Jenny, hoping to give them to her once she had been rescued. The remaining few letters were addressed mainly to Anne but Desmond also got three letters addressed to him which he was fine with.  

The Assassin informed them that Edward Kenway had divorced his wife (and they were just hearing about this now?!) and had traveled to one of the British colonies to help Ah Tabai’s apprentice Achilles Davenport in establishing a guild. 

Desmond immediately froze.

He didn’t even know that Achilles had been Ah Tabai’s apprentice and he didn’t remember ever seeing the man in Great Inagua. It was possible that he simply missed him, having spent most of his childhood in the Jackdaw but…

This changes everything.

Edward Kenway was never part of the Colonial Assassins. Ratonhnhaké:ton would have known if he had been. That meant… 

Edward Kenway either never left England in the previous timeline or…

He never survived the attack in the Kenway Estates.

It would make sense. With Edward dead, Jenny abducted, and Birch having the ears of Tessa, Haytham could have easily been raised to accept the Templar Order’s ideals and philosophy had Birch gotten a hold of him. He was a close family friend and Edward had been pushing Jenny to marry him. No one had known he was even a Templar and it wasn’t like Jenny had anyone like Desmond back in the original timeline to tell about Birch’s true allegiance. 

He… he was able to change the past.

Desmond… 

Desmond was finally able to save someone he cared about.

“Master Kenway asked that this be given to you, Master Bonny.” 

Desmond blinked and watched as the Assassin gave the letter to his mother instead of him. Anne opened the letter and her eyes widened at the words written inside. She turned to look at Desmond and said, “Edward… Edward wants us to join him in North America.” 

Desmond was torn. On one hand, becoming part of the developing Colonial Brotherhood would mean he would be close to the Kanien'kehá:ka tribe, which meant he could, in theory, set Haytham and  Kaniehtí:io up. 

… Not that Desmond had any experience in matchmaking.

Right now, Haytham showed no sign of being ‘dissatisfied’ being an Assassin. He liked to question everything which was fine for Desmond as it only made the teenager realize the same contradictions Ezio and Altaïr had realized later on. The Creed was meant as a guide and as a warning and Haytham took that to heart. Maybe ‘settling down’ in America would further help Haytham and Jenny to grow both as a person and as an Assassin. Hell, Edward sure as hell deserved to be with his children and it might help Jenny heal if she was in one place where she can feel safe in.

On the other hand…

He wanted to find Altaïr’s Apple and retrieve Ezio’s Apple in the vault. Something inside him was telling him that he needed both of them. Any other time, he would be wary and think that maybe it was some kind of Isu bullshit forcing him again like what Juno did back in Rome.

But he was sure it wasn’t. At the very least, he truly believed his desire to find and keep Altaïr’s and Ezio’s Apples was mainly because they were something they left behind.

Something that once belonged to them…

And Desmond… he just wanted to have something of them. Something concrete that showed that Altaïr and Ezio had lived, had been real…

Had been important…

Everything Desmond had done was to make sure Ratonhnhaké:ton get to be born into a loving family but.. Desmond also selfishly wanted to keep the memories of Altaïr and Ezio alive.

And those two Apples were the closest things Desmond could think of.

Both Haytham and Jenny weren’t sure on what to do as well and it seemed they were waiting for Desmond’s decision. Anne, on the other hand…

She wanted to join Edward.

Desmond had been surprised but he didn’t say anything, only setting course for America once they had gotten all the supplies they would need for the trip (they would still need to stop somewhere to refill their stocks though) and after Desmond had requested that the British Assassins send any information they may have on any (even rumors) expeditions done in Syria during the last few centuries. Desmond didn’t say anything about the Apple but he did explain that he was interested in any British expeditions in Masyaf or anywhere near it which raised some eyebrows. Miko, the current head of the British Brotherhood, had only nodded and promised that they would look into it. Desmond was pretty sure Miko knew that he was looking for Altaïr’s Apple but he didn’t ask so Desmond didn’t say anything.

They reached what would later be called Davenport Homestead in January of 1741. A sense of nostalgia filled Desmond as they docked and he couldn’t help but smile when he saw Edward standing by the docks, waiting for them. Edward hugged every one of them, holding Jenny the longest in his arms as he repeatedly whispered sorry in her ear. Jenny didn’t say anything and simply hugged her father tightly.

They were later introduced to the other two Assassins in charge of building the Colonial Brotherhood, Achilles Davenport and John de la Tour, a member of the Parisian Brotherhood. Desmond wasn’t prepared to see Achilles so young (well, he was still older than Desmond but still) and to see him so… passionate as he argued with John de la Tour.

From the tired sigh and shake of Edward’s head, it seemed that this old married couple bit they had going on was a common occurrence. 

They stayed in the Davenport manor (well, it was just a small house at the moment) and Desmond learned that Edward had been the one to suggest they put their roots here. When Desmond had asked why, Edward had looked at him for a few moments before taking him to the secret basement where he showed the young man his journal. 

It was written in code but Edward explained that he had been searching for a specific temple of the First Civilization, a kind of obsession he had developed after hearing it from the dying Bartholomew Roberts back when he had been a pirate.

As Desmond listened to Edward explain the information he was able to gather and his theories, Desmond realized what Edward was trying to find.

It was the Grand Temple. Edward had theorized it was either in Massachusetts or New York and had decided to settle in Massachusetts while he looked for clues.

Here in what will later be called Davenport Homestead…  

That had been the main reason why he had accepted a post here in America. 

Edward was looking for the Grand Temple.

Desmond wasn’t going to lie.

He actually forgot about the Grand Temple and about, well, what will happen centuries from now. 

Now that he was changing the past, changing Ratonhnhaké:ton’s future…

Would this… unintentionally lead to Desmond Miles not being born?

Was it possible that, if he continued down this path, he would… who knows… disappear? He heard that was a common time travel plot point, changing the past meant he would no longer exist in the future, ergo he should disappear.

Ugh.

Desmond was getting a migraine just trying to think about this.

Anyway, regardless if he’s signing his death certificate, he wasn’t going to change his mind. If he was going to disappear, he would at least make sure Ratonhnhaké:ton gets to live and be surrounded by people who would love and nurture him.

But still… The Grand Temple, huh…

It really says a lot that Edward didn’t bat an eyelash when Desmond told him he knew where the Grand Temple was. He simply stared at him and asked, “Where is it then, lad?”

Desmond blinked at him and asked back, “That’s it? I tell you I know where the temple that you’ve been looking for a long time is and you just… accept that I know where it is?”

Edward rubbed his chin as he admitted casually, “I… I assumed you’re like Roberts. He was born with the memories of someone else, of a different time. They called him a Sage.”

Desmond had read about Bartholomew Roberts from different Assassin reports, mainly Edward’s reports. He didn’t really think that much of him, being more focused on reports that could help him find Jenny. 

But, from the reports he had read, Desmond was pretty sure Roberts had been a reincarnation of an Isu, not a 21st-century unlucky guy like Desmond. Hell, from the last words he spoke as Edward recalled them in his report, he was pretty sure Roberts had been an Isu who, Desmond felt like he was going to vomit just thinking about it, was in love with Juno.

Ugh. 

“Ah.” Desmond nodded as he mused, “I suppose you think I’m a Sage too?”

“Aye.” Edward nodded as he added, “I believe you are a Sage but not the same Sage as Roberts. I believe you are from a different line of Sages which included the great Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad and Ezio Auditore.”

Desmond had to stop himself from laughing out loud.

Oh god.

That was even worse than the theory that he was the reincarnation of Altaïr and Ezio.

Jesus.

Just imagining that he, Ezio, and Altaïr were Sages of an Isu was horrifying.

What was next?

That the Isu they were meant to be Sages of was actually Minerva? 

Oh, wait.

Desmond just got a better and more disturbing idea.

How about if they were the Sages of Eve instead?

He never did get to find out why Clay had wanted to show them that video of Eve and Adam stealing the Apple in the first place.  

It would definitely be a ‘what the fuck’ plot twist if that was the case but Desmond wouldn’t even be surprised if he wasn’t entirely wrong. Getting reincarnated into the past was apparently a thing so why not be the Sage of a human-Isu hybrid? 

“Okay then.” Desmond closed Edward’s journal loudly before asking, “Wanna go see the temple?”

Just like most of the weird unexplainable things in Desmond’s life, he will just ignore that terrifying thought and focus on what he could do.

Help Edward with this quest of his and maybe say hello to Juno? Sure, why not?

Desmond hadn’t meant to make it a family outing.

He assumed he and Edward would just… travel to the Grand Temple, maybe have a shouting match with Juno then be back before… Well, not dinner since it would take days to travel there, but the point was…

He didn’t think Haytham would demand to come with them. 

“You are letting father do an Ezio! Obviously, you cannot be trusted to think clearly when it concerns old men and their stupid need to leave everything behind to find some god-forsaken answer to a question they’ve been asking for years!” 

“I’m not that old yet, son.”

Desmond wanted to defend Ezio’s decision to go to Masyaf so badly but he kept quiet instead, too surprised by the look of naked worry on Haytham’s face.

Awwww. He did care.

Haytham’s demand caused Jenny to join as well because she believed the Kenway boys (Desmond included) were too stupid to be left to their own devices. This caused Anne to come with them, saying that Jenny will need all the help she can get.

And that was that.

When Edward tried to inform Achilles he would be leaving with the rest of the Kenways (and Bonnys and Scott), Achilles raised his hand to stop Edward from speaking, stared at Edward’s family behind him, and smartly said, “I don’t want to know. Just write a report afterward and don’t die.”

He still helped them pack their supplies and watched them leave though, the big softie.

When they finally entered the Grand Temple with Desmond waiting for Juno to start insulting them while the others looked around in awe and (in Haytham’s case) wary, Edward’s chest began to glow that golden light that Desmond had associated with ‘oh no, there’s some Isu bullshit coming this way’. 

Edward took off an amulet and Desmond’s eyes widened as he recognized it as the key needed to operate the device.

His body moved on its own and he grabbed the key.

Desmond didn’t even know why he did it.

All he could think was…

Edward was going to activate the device.

Edward was going to die.

No.

Desmond won’t let him.

The moment his hand grabbed the key, the entire Temple began to glow and they all heard a creaking sound coming from above them.

“What have you done!?”

Oh, hey, Juno’s here.

Yippee.

Juno appeared before Desmond and Edward, her eyes widening as she focused on Desmond, “You… how…”

“Hey, Juno.” Desmond waved his other hand nonchalantly as he asked, “You know what’s happening? ‘Cause I sure as hell don’t.”

Juno glanced at the key still in Desmond’s hand, ignoring the stares of the other people in the temple, before turning to face Desmond once more, “You have activated the Eye… You shouldn’t… You shouldn’t be able to activate it. The key shouldn’t even be able to activate it!”

Juno paced as she shouted, “You shouldn’t even be here yet! What have you done, Desmond!?”

Desmond finally let go of the key and crossed his arms as he retorted, “Me? What have I done? Oh, don’t give me that. You and your buddies are the ones messing with history. Not me. Hell, I’m here because of yo-”

“Stop.” 

Desmond stopped talking immediately when he heard his own voice. He and Juno turned towards the Eye and their eyes widened as they saw the Eye glowing. 

“Wipe everything.”

The entire Grand Temple was engulfed in gray, making everyone but Desmond and Juno gasp. 

“Run it again.”

In front of them, a great golden tree sprouted, its branches twitching and elongating in random intervals. 

“This is…” Juno took a step towards the tree, her eyes widening as she uttered, “Desmond.”

“What?” Desmond stared at Juno and blinked when Juno disappeared. A moment later, Anne and Jenny disappeared as well, leaving Desmond, Haytham, and Edward standing in the endless expanse of the Gray.

“Hello, Desmond.” A golden figure appeared in front of the tree, turning his head to nod at the other two with Desmond, “Haytham. Mister Kenway.”

“Jaysus.” Edward uttered with wide eyes.

“No. I’m not.” The golden figure replied, turning to face Desmond as he asked, “Have you come to activate the Global Aurora Borealis Device?”

“Will it kill me again?” Desmond asked, staring at the golden figure.

He was using Desmond’s voice but it was monotone, almost… robotic.

“Yes.” The golden figure replied.

“Then I’ll pass,” Desmond said with a wry smile.

“Very well.” One of the long branches of the golden tree behind the figure turned into golden dust, “Then why have you activated the Eye? Do you have a question concerning the possible calculations available to you?”

Desmond blinked.

Oh.

He was an AI, wasn’t he?

Some kind of AI in the Eye or something… maybe he was used to help with the calculations or something?

Why he was using Desmond’s own voice or why he never appeared when Juno used the Eye before to show Desmond what would happen if he didn’t use the device though… well, he’ll chalk that up to Isu bullshit and Juno probably wanting to keep it a secret.

“The device needs to be activated to save the world in 2012, right?” Desmond asked, making both Haytham and Edward stare at him with wide eyes.

“Correct.” The golden figure replied, “The Global Aurora Borealis Device is the best and only working device that can save the world in 2012 at the moment.”

“But for it to be activated, I have to die.” Desmond continued.

“Incorrect.”

“What.” Desmond stared at the figure with an open mouth.

“Your question is if you have to die for the device to be activated. That is incorrect. The device is meant to be activated by an Isu.” The golden figure explained, “As such, any Isu can activate the device without dying. However, by the year 2012, the Isus had died out. Because of this, Minerva searched the calculations for a specific human with enough Isu DNA to activate the device. That is Desmond Miles.”

A golden hologram of Desmond appeared in front of them. Haytham stared at it as he mumbled, “He… He looks exactly like you, Desmond.”

“Desmond Miles was born with enough Isu DNA to operate all Isu devices at its fullest potential without any possible side effects.” The golden figure continued, “And, as Desmond Miles’ successor, you can too.”

“His successor…” Desmond repeated, eyes widening as he asked, “What… what am I?”

The golden figure didn’t reply immediately. It looked like it was staring at Desmond for a few moments before finally saying, “You are the Desmond of this branch, born out of Desmond Miles’ desire to have a family that will love him.”

“Born of Desmond Miles’ wish to give his ancestor a life of happiness and love.” 

Desmond couldn’t breathe.

Did that mean… he wasn’t really Desmond Miles then?

Just a… what? A copy? An… alternate version of Desmond Miles that was created by the original?

“Do you wish to use the device without dying?” The golden figure asked.

“I thought… I thought I had to die to activate the device?” Desmond asked, thoroughly confused now.

“You will die if you activate the device, correct.” The golden figure nodded before raising a hand, “But if you wish to change that outcome…” 

The hologram of Desmond Miles turned into dust and three new holograms appeared in front of them.

Desmond’s eyes widened as he recognized each of them.

“You will need the three specific Apples touched by Desmond Miles’ ancestors.” The golden figure instructed, “Bring them here and place them in a triangle around the device’s activation panel.”

“And then what?”

The golden figure paused for a moment before replying, “What will happen next I cannot say out loud. Not while Juno may be able to hear it. But it will be a calculation Minerva had never thought of. A calculation none of the Isu could have predicted.”

“It is a calculation that only you as the Desmond of this branch can bring forth.” The Gray started to flicker out of existence, showing the Grand Temple once more, as the golden figure continued, “Juno cannot do anything to stop you as long as she remains here in the Grand Temple but it would be safer for her not to know anything. Find the three Apples and return here. I will appear once more once you have all three.”

The monotone voice became soft as Desmond heard, “Safety and peace, Desmond. Good luck.”  

Jenny and Anne had been worried when they returned to the Temple, saying that the three of them just appeared in a flash of golden light. When they asked what had happened, Edward had been the one to tell them they would speak about it after they returned to the Brotherhood’s headquarters, his eyes staring straight at the silent Juno who was glaring at them from one of the levels above them. Jenny and Anne noticed where Edward had been staring and they nodded silently.

When they all left the Temple, Haytham let out a high-pitched yelp as he was suddenly slammed to the ground, the blade of a tomahawk pressed against his neck as a young girl who couldn’t have been more than ten years old pinned him to the ground.

As Desmond stared at the young girl pinning Haytham to the ground and other members of the Kanien'kehá:ka tribe started to surround them, he wondered.

Did.. this count as meet-cute for Haytham and Kaniehtí:io?

Desmond was able to smooth things over with the Kanien'kehá:ka tribe but he was pretty sure they listened to him because they were curious as to why he knew and was able to fluently speak their language. Because of this, Desmond was interrogated by their clan mother who Desmond was pretty sure was Kaniehtí:io’s mother while Edward and the rest were kept in a separate room.

The clan mother listened patiently as Desmond tried to explain why they were there without talking about the whole ‘getting reincarnated into the past’ part which meant he had to say that he knew things from the distant past and the future, like visions or something. At the word vision, the clan mother showed him the crystal ball that Juno used to contact them and Juno had grown angry when she realized that she was talking to Desmond. 

Desmond’s hands slipped and it broke.

Oops.

The clan mother simply looked at him with raised eyebrows and Desmond had to spend two more hours trying to explain what the Grand Temple was and who Juno was. It took a lot of explaining and revealing Juno’s dirty laundry for the clan mother to believe him but Desmond would like to believe it was worth it.

By the end of the long interrogation, Desmond was pretty sure the clan mother assumed that Desmond had received his knowledge from the spirits or something and they were treated as guests.

At this point, Desmond was just happy that no one was calling him a god or something equally horrifying.

While he was busy getting interrogated, it seemed Edward and Haytham had started to try and converse with the other members of the tribe and Edward even had his notebook out and it reminded Desmond of a game of Pictionary. The pure joy on Edward’s face whenever he managed to get the person he was talking to understand what he was saying, even if it was just to tell them that Haytham and Jenny were his children, was adorable.  

He saw Haytham and Kaniehtí:io trying to converse with one another but they looked like they were ready to just start punching each other as well.

… Eh. Desmond would count that as a win.

They stayed with the Kaniehtí:io’s tribe for about a week, during which Edward and Haytham had explained to Anne and Jenny about what they had seen in the Gray. 

Haytham and Edward seemed to think that Desmond Miles would be the next one in Desmond’s lineage of Sages and their Desmond could see glimpses of both the past Sages (specifically Altaïr and Ezio) and the future Sages (specifically Desmond Miles). Desmond just… went along with it. It wasn’t exactly wrong and he didn’t really want to try and explain the real truth. 

So, fine, he was a Sage now.

Allegedly…

They all agree to keep this quiet for now, especially since it wasn’t like anyone would believe them and it seemed like a bad idea to let Juno talk to other people. Edward absolutely didn’t want Achilles or John to know about Juno’s existence. From what Desmond had told them, Juno manipulated humans using false promises and half-lies. She could easily destroy the rocky relationship Achilles and John had at the moment and the Colonial Brotherhood needed to be a united front. 

Edward and Anne also started to try and talk to the clan mother and the other members of the tribe. Desmond helped translate most of the time but the two also tried to learn, sometimes even trying to talk to them without Desmond. That meant there were a lot of drawings and pointing but it seemed to only make them respect Edward and Anne more for trying which was nice. To reciprocate, many of them also tried to learn English but… well, Desmond was a bit worried about that as Edward and Anne tended to fall back to their ‘pirate’ slang and their accents grew thicker whenever they got too excited. The idea of Kaniehtí:io speaking using pirate lingo with a mix of thick Welsh and Irish accent sounded funny though. 

It… It was a miracle that Desmond didn’t grow up with his mother’s Irish accent, wasn’t it?

Oh god. The face Shaun would have made if he heard Desmond speak with an Irish accent would have been so funny though.

Jenny was left to keep an eye on Haytham and Kaniehtí:io. After almost killing Haytham with a tomahawk, Kaniehtí:io had started to follow him around with glaring eyes which annoyed Haytham. This, in turn, meant Haytham spent most of his time trying to get away from Kaniehtí:io and even went running all over the forest to try and shake her off. Jenny had become their unofficial chaperone because, the last time they were left alone, Kaniehtí:io had hit Haytham on the head with a rock after he had insulted her in four languages: English, archaic Arabic, archaic Florentine Italian, and Kaniehtí:io’s own language which he specifically learned just to annoy the young girl. Jenny was pretty much just there to stop her brother from getting himself killed.

Desmond looked at them for a couple of minutes and shrugged.

It’ll probably work out in the end.

… Hopefully.

God. Desmond hoped so.

He was really dreading having to play matchmaker between the two.  

When they finally returned to the Colonial Brotherhood’s headquarters, Edward had a long conversation with Achilles and John. Desmond wasn’t sure what they talked about but all three agreed that Edward would be in charge of building relationships with the tribes near them with a long-term goal of hopefully gaining alliances with some, if not all, of them.

Desmond, on the other hand, had received a large wooden cart filled with reports and journals detailing every known and rumored expedition the British had done in Syria. And Miko did realize Desmond was looking for Altaïr’s Apple because he included in the cart every sighting and rumor concerning a Piece of Eden in England for the past six centuries.

A bit of an overkill perhaps but Desmond appreciated it nonetheless.

It did make him wonder where all these documents and reports ended up in the 21st century. From what Shaun had informed him, the Assassins only had the bare minimum information about the Brotherhood’s past missions throughout the centuries. It was like all the records were destroyed or something…

Shaun had theorized that the Assassins destroyed their records whenever they found out that they had been compromised or the Templars had also destroyed every record they found during the time they were wiping out any mentions of the Assassin Brotherhood in history.

Regardless, one of these records and reports should offer some kind of hint. 

Desmond hoped.

The remaining months of the year 1741 were a busy time for Desmond. He had to divide his time training Jenny and Haytham (with the help of Anne and Edward), looking over the contents of the cart the British Brotherhood sent to him (with the help of Jenny and Haytham), and trying to help the Colonial Brotherhood in forming an alliance with the Kanien'kehá:ka and the other tribes. 

Thankfully, Edward and Anne were getting better at speaking the Kanien'kehá:ka’s language and Haytham was fluent enough that he could assist them in Desmond’s place. Kaniehtí:io would also sometimes join them whenever they would talk to other tribes. Desmond… wasn’t entirely sure why she joined them. His first guess would be that the clan mother sent her daughter as a sign of good faith or something but Kaniehtí:io mostly spent the time glaring and following Haytham around. She also had the habit of sarcastically correcting Haytham whenever he translated something wrong or the young girl would dryly provide a better translation. 

Edward and Anne were amused by the entire thing. Haytham had been so annoyed that he demanded Desmond to teach him everything he knew about Kaniehtí:io’s language.

“I will show that girl!” 

“Show her what?”

“You know what I mean, Desmond!”

Desmond stressed that things were going well in the ‘Haytham-and-Kaniehtí:io’ department. It was going well.

In the middle of the twelfth month in the year 1741, Desmond finally finished reading every single record and report the British Brotherhood had sent. 

And he found a clue.

There was a well-known painting of Queen Elizabeth holding the Apple that had been given to Elizabeth Jane Weston.

This meant that Altaïr’s Apple had fallen into the hands of the British monarch. 

Desmond sighed and rubbed his eyes.

Guess it was time for him to return to London.

Desmond wasn’t surprised when Haytham and Jenny decided to join him. They really were only staying in America because their family was there but he could see that they were itching to leave. 

What he was surprised about was the fact that his mother was planning to stay.

“You will be fine, my little miracle,” Anne told him as they stood by the docks. The Jackdaw was ready to depart and Edward’s two children had already said their goodbyes to both Anne and Edward.

“I know, it’s just…” Desmond wasn’t sure what to say next. His entire life, his mother had been with him, guiding him and keeping him from doing anything too stupid even for a pirate like her.

She placed both her hands on Desmond’s cheeks and whispered, “It’s time for you to sail the seas without me. But remember, you will always have a place here with me.”

“I know, mama.” Desmond whispered back and hugged his mother tightly, “I’ll come back. I promise.”

Anne pressed a soft kiss on her son’s temple and whispered, “I know you will.” 

On December 21, 1741, the Jackdaw left America and set sail for London with their new official captain, Captain Desmond Edward Mary-

“Kenway-Scott-Bonny.”

“I am not calling myself that!”

… together with the sixteen years old Haytham Kenway as the Jackdaw’s quartermaster.

Years 1742 - 1746 - Desmond Edward Mary (sigh) Kenway-Scott-Bonny (21 - 25 years old)

It took five long years to finally find Altaïr’s Apple. They had to look deep into the life of Queen Elizabeth the First and even went as far as researching known Templars during her time. This eventually led them into following the East India Company before finally managing to intercept the supposedly Templar-controlled Man O’ War ‘The Venerable’ that was on its way to India. It was no match for the Jackdaw and they managed to board the ship with minimal damage on their side after bombarding it with mortar rounds and cannons (Jenny was a very frightening sharpshooter). The ship had been filled with Templars but they managed to capture a few of them alive.

Desmond left the interrogations to Haytham and Jenny while he looked over the different chests they had taken from the ship before sinking it. 

Most of the chests were filled with items that would bring a huge sum to their coffers which he was sure Haytham would like. The young man always had a pinched look on his face whenever he saw the Jackdaw’s ledgers veering dangerously to the negatives. 

On one of the smaller chests, Desmond finally found what he was looking for. Altaïr’s Apple had been locked inside a small box, covered by bags of sugars. When he held the Apple with both of his hands, it pulsed a warm golden glow once before seemingly powering down. 

The entire room darkened then he was back in the empty dark library again, standing in front of Altaïr as he sat down. He raised his head and stared directly at Desmond. His mouth opened and Desmond touched his wizened hand. 

“It’s okay.” Desmond whispered softly, lips curving into a sad smile, “You’ve done enough. You’ve done more than enough. You can rest now, Altaïr.” 

Altaïr stared at him for a moment before smiling back tiredly. He watched as Altaïr’s eyes closed and tears fell from Desmond’s eyes as he kissed Altaïr’s forehead, “Good night, akhi.”

“Desmond?” Jenny called out and Desmond opened his eyes. He was back in the captain’s quarters, hands on Altaïr’s Apple and tears falling from his face. 

“Are you… alright?” Jenny asked worriedly.

Desmond took a deep breath and pressed the Apple against his chest as he said, “Just… just saying goodbye to someone important to me.”

“I… see…” Jenny paused for a moment before saying, “One of the Templars talked.”

“Oh?” Desmond stood, putting Altaïr’s Apple in a pouch right next to his sword. 

“The Templars have been in America far longer than we thought and…” Jenny’s eyes darkened as she said, “Their Grand Master is Reginald Birch.” 

While he knew for a fact that Jenny wanted to return to America and hunt down Birch, she didn’t voice any complaints when Desmond set sail for Italy and only sent a letter to inform Edward and Anne about what they had found out. Instead of sailing straight for Rome, Desmond docked at Livorno instead. He gave command of the ship to Jenny while he and Haytham traveled to Rome by horses, telling her to meet them in Rome after securing supplies in Livorno.

Jenny and Haytham thought he was being stupid but neither of them raised an objection.

Haytham later realized why they had traveled on horseback instead of sailing directly to Rome when Desmond took a detour and went straight for Monteriggioni in Tuscany. They left their horses in the nearest stable they found and Desmond led Haytham out of the town and into a hidden entrance underneath the town itself. 

They needed to freerun over what Haytham assumed was a mine of some sort and they had to swim across the disgusting water underneath as well. Haytham had been confused by Desmond’s joke of watching out for bats but the older man just shook his head and continued on like he had never said a thing.

When they reached the Sanctuary, Haytham couldn’t help but be impressed as he looked at each statue, saving Altaïr’s statue for last. Staring at the statue, Haytham realized that Altaïr had been one of the three men they had seen back in the Grand Temple, the three men holding a specific Apple Desmond needed to help the next Sage.

That meant that one of the other two had to be Ezio Auditore while the last one was…

Who was the last one?

Haytham watched silently as Desmond took out a small book and placed it by the statue’s feet. He took out the wood carving he had ever since he was a baby and placed it on top of the journal. 

“I wish I could visit you in Firenze, Ezio, but… well… we’ve always had a soft spot for Monteriggioni, right?” Desmond whispered in archaic Italian at the wood carving. He patted the journal as he asked, “Keep this safe until he gets here, okay? If he even gets here.”

Desmond closed his eyes and whispered, “Goodbye, Ezio. I’m sorry I couldn’t answer any of your questions.”

He opened his eyes and grinned softly as he poked the wood carving, “You were always my favorite.”

He winced as he raised his head to stare at Altaïr’s statue and whispered with a sheepish smile, “Sorry.”

He turned to face Haytham and smiled softly, “Let’s go and get Ezio’s Apple.”

Haytham didn’t say anything and simply nodded, following Desmond out of the Sanctuary, back into the tunnel they had entered from.

Haytham was just relieved he didn’t have to see Desmond cry again.

When they reached Rome, members of the Italian Brotherhood were already there to greet them. They talked to Desmond for a bit, asking him questions that were strange to Haytham but only made Desmond sigh in resignation.

By the end of their conversation, Desmond could just grimace when they called him ‘Signore Auditore’. 

Thankfully, the Jackdaw was already at port and Jenny joined them as Desmond guided them to the colosseum. Desmond was adamant that they waited until nightfall which they later found out was a good thing because he led them directly into Santa Maria Aracoeli. Had they tried to enter during the daytime, Haytham and Jenny were sure they would have been spotted. 

Desmond led them into a vault quite similar to the Grand Temple and they all watched as Desmond approached the pedestal where the Apple had been set on.

“You mustn’t!” Juno’s ghostly voice resonated all over the vault as it began to rumble and the Apple flashed, “You must not take it. It is not yet time. It must remain-”

Altaïr’s Apple glowed from inside of Desmond’s pouch and it let out a pulse of golden light that lit the entire vault for a few seconds before everything darkened once more.

They all looked around as the entire vault remained quiet.

“What… was that?” Jenny asked with wide eyes. 

Desmond stared at his pouch as he mused out loud, “I… I think Altaïr’s Apple just pressed the mute button on Juno.”

“The what?” Jenny asked and Desmond waved his hand absentmindedly.

“Nevermind. Just thinking out loud.” Desmond mumbled and slowly grabbed Ezio’s Apple with both hands, praying it wouldn’t make Juno control him again.

Ezio’s Apple pulsed a warm golden glow once before seemingly powering down. The entire vault darkened before Desmond found himself sitting on some kind of bench, watching as people walked by. He heard heavy breathing right next to him and his eyes widened as he recognized the old man next to him. 

“Ezio?” Desmond choked out and Ezio’s head turned to face him, his eyes widening as if he recognized who the man next to him was. He reached out toward Desmond weakly and Desmond grabbed his hand. Ezio’s mouth opened but all he could do was continue to breathe heavily. Tears fell from Desmond’s eyes as he whispered, “It was worth something, Ezio. Everything you’ve done, everything you’ve lost, everything…”

Desmond smiled as he whispered, “I saved the world, Ezio. You helped me save the world.”

He felt Ezio weakly squeeze his hand and saw the soft smile on his face as his eyes slowly closed and his head fell on Desmond’s shoulder. Desmond pressed his head against the top of Ezio’s head and held Ezio in his arms as he whispered, “ Requiescat in pace, fratello mio … Thank you…”

“Desmond?” Haytham’s voice called out and Desmond opened his eyes, tears falling from his face as he held Ezio’s Apple in his hands. 

Desmond took a deep breath and pressed the Apple against his chest as he said, “I’m okay. Just… Just saying goodbye to someone important to me…”

Jenny’s eyes softened, having heard the same words before. They watched silently as Desmond placed the Apple in another pouch, right next to the tomahawk that the clan mother had given him before they left.

Desmond rubbed the tears away and turned to face Haytham and Jenny as he said, “Okay then. Let’s go and check out how they’re doing back in America.”

Years 1747 - 1756 - Desmond Edward Mary (okay, fine) Kenway-Scott-Bonny (26 - 35 years old)

The answer was… pretty good, actually. 

They arrived in America by November of 1747, having made a lot of side trips along the way to help out the other Assassins and try to get information of either Birch or maybe the third Apple that may or may not already be in America at this point. 

It seemed that the Colonial Brotherhood thrived in their absence. When they had returned, the small house that acted as the Colonial Brotherhood’s headquarters had become a homestead. As expected, it was named the Davenport Homestead and Achilles had formally been given the title of the mentor. John had died sometime during their absence while Edward and Anne were given the unofficial position as Achilles’ second-in-commands. Achilles had apparently recruited a few Assassins to take on field missions and they would even receive visiting Assassins from other Brotherhoods, including Edward and Anne’s dear old friend Adéwalé. 

They had a lot of promising Assassins in their ranks, including a new recruit by the name of Shay Patrick Cormac. Desmond’s mother had been the one to introduce the sixteen-year-old boy to Desmond, smiling as she said, “We Cormacs need to stick together. Look after him, will you, my little miracle?”

“Of course, mama,” Desmond replied immediately as he nodded, blinking as he watched his mother walk away. Desmond shouted at her retreating form, “Wait! Your maiden name is Cormac?! Shouldn’t I be Cormac instead of Bonny then?! Mama!”

Anne just laughed as she walked away without turning to answer her son.

Jenny and Haytham, who had been watching the scene unfold from behind Desmond, stared at the confused Shay. 

“Desmond Edward Mary-”

“Don’t,” Desmond ordered with a tired sigh. 

They kinda officially joined the Colonial Brotherhood that year. Desmond used the word ‘kinda’ as he didn’t necessarily take orders from Achilles and, instead, taking direct orders from both Edward and Anne (and they always ask nicely which made it almost impossible for Desmond to say no). Unofficially, they were called the Kenways because it was easier to say that than Kenway-Scott-Bonny(Cormac???) and, at that point, the eccentric captain of the Jackdaw was already well known by almost every Assassin out there so no one batted an eyelash whenever he just did his own thing. While Achilles focused more on expanding the Brotherhood’s network and keeping an eye on Templar activities, Edward and Anne had been focused on developing and maintaining their relationship with the native tribes in America. They had managed to secure an alliance with Kaniehtí:io’s tribe as well as Kasegowaase’s tribe while keeping an amicable relationship with many more. Desmond had been more than happy to suggest they use Haytham any time someone needed to talk to Kaniehtí:io’s tribe. Edward and Anne had simply looked amused while Jenny rolled her eyes. 

Hey, he wasn’t the one receiving an almost monthly letter from Kaniehtí:io the entire time they were out looking for Altaïr’s Apple. 

Hell, he had been surprised the first time he saw Kaniehtí:io’s name as the sender in one of the letters they received. Haytham had been very tightlipped about it but Desmond knew without a doubt that Anne (and Edward) had been helping Kaniehtí:io write her letters for at least the first two years. 

Jenny eventually commented on it after she saw him grinning as he watched Haytham and Kaniehtí:io from the balcony of the Davenport manor. Kaniehtí:io had visited the homestead in her mother’s stead to talk about something (Desmond wasn’t really sure what) to Edward and Anne. Jenny leaned against the balcony railing as she commented, “You are not as subtle as you think.” 

Desmond remained quiet for a moment before asking, “… Do you think Haytham realizes it?” 

Jenny sighed as she bluntly replied, “No. He's dumb.” 

“Haytham's a smart boy, Jenny,” Desmond said with a slight frown, turning to stare at her. No matter how old Haytham became, Desmond sometimes slipped and called him a boy. It always made Haytham glare at him which Desmond just ignored. 

“You can be both smart and dumb at the same time.” Jenny raised an eyebrow as she waved her hand, “Case in point: you.” 

“Me?” Desmond blinked. 

“Yes.” She nodded.

“Why woul-”

“Desmond!” Both Desmond and Jenny looked down and saw Shay waving eagerly at him as he shouted, “Hope set up a new course! Want to check it out with me?!”

“A new course? Hell yeah!” Desmond turned towards Jenny and asked, “Wanna come?”

“No thank you. Have fun.” Jenny flippantly replied, resting her elbows on the balcony railing. Desmond shrugged and jumped off the balcony. 

Jenny watched as Shay followed Desmond, talking about how his training with Hope and the other Assassins was going. The young man grinned when Desmond ruffled his head. A moment later, Haytham said goodbye to Kaniehtí:io and ran after the two, making the young woman raise an eyebrow as she watched Haytham leave her quickly. 

Jenny sighed and went back inside, mumbling as she shook her head, “Dumb boys.”

Desmond mostly watched from the sideline as the Colonial Brotherhood grew and thrived for the next nine years. He watched from the sideline as the Seven Year War began. Desmond wasn’t familiar with the war itself or how it went (and he could totally imagine Shaun sighing and rubbing the bridge of his nose at Desmond’s lack of knowledge while Rebecca chuckled in the background) but he tried to help out the Colonial Brotherhood as much as he could. He even helped Shay and Liam on their mission in the North Atlantic. He didn’t really do much, just helped them sink the ships chasing after Shay’s newly acquired ship, the beautiful sloop-of-war Shay had christened as the Morrigan.

However, his main focus was finding out where the Apple of Eden that Ratonhnhaké:ton touched was. He had vague memories of the strange vision the Apple had shown Ratonhnhaké:ton and George Washington but he had no memories of how and where George Washington got the Apple. 

So he tried asking Altaïr’s Apple.

Of the two Apples in his possession, Altaïr’s Apple was more responsive to him. Desmond couldn’t be sure but he believed Minerva had done something to Ezio’s Apple when she touched it. Lucy had theorized that Ezio’s Apple held the key to finding the other Temples but, comparing the two Apples now, Desmond wasn’t so sure anymore.

Ezio’s Apple seemed… lacking. Like… its functions were limited or something had locked a few of its functions. 

Altaïr’s Apple, on the other hand, was a coy little bitch. Oh, it gave him what he was looking for, sure, but it kept giving him hints on where it was instead of just showing him where it currently was. Honestly, Desmond wouldn’t be surprised if Altaïr had thrown this Apple more than once out of frustration. Desmond sure as hell wanted to. He did know it was somewhere either in New York or Boston from the flashes of underground tunnels the Apple had given him. They looked very similar to the tunnels Ratonhnhaké:ton would use to remain undetected. 

The problem became where the hell was it.

Left with no other choice, Desmond tried to look for clues in New York and Boston whenever he could, which he couldn’t do that often as the Colonial Brotherhood became more and more active participants in the Seven Years’ Wars which meant he was dragged into more and more missions with them.

He also had to continue Haytham and Jenny’s training, even though, at this point, he was more like teaching them the tricks Desmond had learned from his ancestors. Shay also liked to join them and Desmond realized that Haytham and Shay had some kind of rivalry going between them. They kept calling each other ‘Brother Kenway’ and ‘Novice Cormac’ in the same sarcastic tone and would always make every lesson Desmond would conduct as some kind of competition on whoever could do it better or whoever could get Desmond to say ‘good, you got it’ first.

Jenny wasn’t any help and actually actively egged them on. If Shay was doing better, she made sure to annoy Haytham. If her brother was doing better, she would pat Shay on the back and say things like ‘oh well, that tends to happen when you’ve been training under Desmond for years’. 

Desmond just sighed and rolled with it. 

As long as Shay and Haytham didn’t actively try to kill each other, he’ll consider their rivalry a healthy one.

God, he hoped it was a healthy one.

Everything finally went to shit in the year 1755. The Kenways had to help Kaniehtí:io in stopping the Braddock Expedition but Desmond couldn’t join the mission and Edward and Anne were forbidden from going to the field due to their age. Haytham had been adamant about that one, glaring at Desmond as if he expected him to use Altaïr or Ezio going to the field when they were in their 60s and 50s respectively to object. Desmond simply kept quiet. He was with Haytham on this. He didn’t want his mother doing any more strenuous tasks and Edward hadn’t been fit for active duty since the attack in the Kenway Estates. Desmond had to let Haytham lead the mission to assist Kaniehtí:io. He remembered what happened next and he made sure to tell Haytham that Braddock must die and Haytham must confirm the kill. Their alliance with Kaniehtí:io and her tribe took precedence over whatever ripple effect Braddock’s early death would make in history. 

Desmond wasn’t sure if George Washington should die though (and Desmond was honestly worried how his untimely death would change America’s history) so he did not tell Haytham that his death must happen no matter what…

Hopefully, their alliance with Kaniehtí:io’s tribe and the other tribes would be enough to prevent the tragedy that will happen in the future.

Hopefully…

The main reason why Desmond couldn’t join Haytham in assisting Kaniehtí:io was because Desmond traveled to New York to coordinate with the Assassins he had sent to both Boston and New York. Hope Jensen had mentioned that she heard sightings of Birch in New York and he wanted to make sure they find Birch and take him out as soon as possible. He knew Jenny would love to be the one to kill him. That was the reason why she accompanied him instead of keeping an eye on her brother and, if the chance presented itself, he’ll let her have her revenge but Desmond had already ordered a kill on sight on Birch for one simple reason. 

He was seen with a golden sphere in his possession.

That was why Desmond had gone to New York in person. If Birch had an Apple, it was highly plausible it was the last Apple Desmond needed. It also meant that, among the Colonial Assassins, Desmond was the best person to hunt Birch. 

Which took him a few months to do. Everyone was stressed and just a loud sound away from snapping at that point. Reginald Birch had been hiding ever since the failed attack on the Kenways and he had become infuriatingly good at it.

It came at a point where Hope, in a fit of frustration and stress, suggested they try and smoke him out by burning all the tunnels the Freemasons have built all over New York. Desmond had been horrified by how risky and dangerous her suggestion had been and, seeing the look on his face, Hope had immediately apologized and looked so ashamed that Desmond started to feel bad. 

That was when he remembered. 

One of the worst things Ezio had ever done.

The destruction of Cappadocia…

Cappadocia had always left a bitter taste in Desmond’s mouth and he knew that his feelings for it mainly came from Ezio himself. The fire had been a necessity but Ezio had always felt guilty about it and horrified at how he was able to do such a thing in the first place. Cappadocia was simply one of the final events that snapped the already fraying thread he held for the Brotherhood’s unending struggles. 

But Ezio hadn’t planned for the fires to get out of hand. He didn’t think it through and he had only wanted to smoke out his target.

And that was what Desmond remembered from Hope’s horrifying suggestion.

They couldn’t find Birch but they were sure he was still in New York.

So instead of being sneaky and looking all over New York, Desmond decided to smoke him out by having the Assassins destroy all known Templar bases. He made sure they leave a message each time.

Just a name.

‘REGINALD BIRCH’ was written in the blood of the Templars stationed there.

Ezio got his target to show himself by causing a fire and making him rush to calm the citizens down.

Desmond planned to do something similar. 

By the aftermath of the third base they had destroyed, even the normal citizens of New York knew of Birch’s name. Rumors were circulating on who he was, the actual target of the attacks, or the perpetrator signing his work.

Once the rumors had gained track, Desmond had Hope and her team scatter flyers with Birch’s face on it. 

No details, no monetary rewards, just a face, and the words ‘Have You Seen Reginald Birch?’.

Desmond was sure many Assassins would have disapproved of his tactics.

It brought too much unnecessary attention to their target which would make it so much harder to take him down.

But Desmond had experienced how it was to be hunted, to have his face plastered all over. He was branded as a terrorist as Desmond Miles. Ratonhnhaké:ton had to hide and learn quickly the lessons Samuel Adams gave him after he was framed. The Borgia and their allies have been hunting Ezio ever since he had been the only male Auditore left alive. Altaïr had been hunted by the Templars ever since the Third Crusades began only because of the sole reason that he was an Assassin. 

Desmond knew about the stress and the paranoia that would hold tight and slowly suffocate.

Until something breaks…

Desmond made sure not to hit all Templar bases too soon and kept the assault as random as possible. The flyers continued (and it was causing a dent on Desmond’s personal funds but that was fine, pickpocketing was easy during this time period anyway and the Assassins made sure to ransack the coffers before fully destroying the bases) to shower New York with Birch’s face after every attack. 

This new tactic took more time and Desmond had to keep a close eye on everyone involved to make sure they didn’t make a mistake because they lost patience.

Jenny, surprisingly, didn’t lose any patience. If anything, she seemed to relish in making Birch sweat. 

Which was a good thing. Desmond had been worried he would have to calm her down from trying to find Birch on her own.

Hope was mostly quiet, watching and listening attentively. He knew Hope was one of Achilles’ more promising Assassins and it showed with how efficiently and quickly she could make a plan. He had stopped planning how to destroy the bases and just let Hope plan it herself. 

She had a knack for the dramatics, that was for sure. 

Reginald Birch broke after three months. 

It was almost anti-climatic. 

Birch had tried to leave New York in the middle of the night but he got the attention of some of the drunkards leaving the tavern, pointing at him as they repeatedly shouted, “Hey! It’s Reginald Birch!”

That caused the attention of many more New Yorkers as his face and name had been an interesting little mystery that caught their attention. The moment Birch caught the eye of one of them, he had nowhere else to hide. Every street and alley had at least one curious person and it didn’t take long before Hope and those under her employ were able to create a mob that slowly inched closer and closer to Birch. 

When Birch knew he had nowhere else to go, he took out his Apple. 

And Desmond took his shot.

The loud gunshot caused everyone to start screaming and running in all directions while Birch was forced to drop the Apple as the bullet hit him right on the wrist. While Hope and those under her employ made sure that no innocent would die during the pandemonium that ensued, Desmond grabbed the Apple from the ground and walked away, glancing only once to see Jenny walk up to Birch and strike him with her hidden blade on the stomach. Jenny leaned close to Birch and whispered coldly, “Your death will not be swift nor will it be kind. Today, you will die knowing you have failed. Today, you will die alone as a failure.”

She slid her hidden blade across his stomach and took a step back, watching as Birch coughed up blood and blood started to pour from the large stomach wound. He placed both of his hands on his stomach, trying to keep both his insides and blood from leaving his body. 

“I hope you have a pleasant day, Mister Birch,” Jenny said in the very same tone she would always use to greet Birch when she had been young and walked away without looking back. As the Assassins dispersed from the scene, Desmond crouched on one of the rooftops, watching Birch take his final breaths, with one hand already holding his pistol just in case. When Birch slumped to the ground, Desmond waited for another three minutes just to make sure.

He finally left when the guards came and pronounced him dead.   

The Apple in his hand was cold and unresponsive.

After putting the Apple on a separate pouch next to Ezio’s Apple (at this point, Desmond should just get a goddamn bag), he, Jenny, and Hope returned to the Homestead.

Desmond was a bit worried when he heard that Haytham was not yet back even though he had already sent a report that his mission had been a success. Edward and Anne weren’t worried though and Haytham’s report did state he wanted to stay with Kaniehtí:io’s tribe for a bit to make sure the remaining soldiers wouldn’t be a problem.

He, Jenny, and Hope were with Achilles, Edward, and Anne that snowy day, reporting about Birch’s demise. Achilles had been curious about the Apple but he didn’t push when Desmond refused to show it to him.

No offense to Achilles but the third Apple was… strange. He wasn’t sure if it had been built this way or Birch had broken it when he dropped it but Desmond couldn’t activate any other functions but that same function that made his ancestor and George Washington see an alternate timeline where George Washington was a tyrannical king. To Desmond, it kept showing him visions of strange alternate timelines like one where he was Altaïr’s second son. It was both disorientating and made him feel complicated feelings that Desmond absolutely did not have the time to unpack and reflect on. 

As long as Desmond wasn’t sure of the current status of this Apple, it was better that he didn’t show it to anybody else.

He let Hope report to Achilles but he did have to interject when Hope forgot to tell Achilles that most of the plans to destroy the Templar bases were made by her. She looked embarrassingly pleased by his interjection though. 

With this, the Templar influence in New York has been destroyed and it would only take perhaps a few months for Hope and her people to take over. 

They were in the middle of planning how to take control of New York (and Desmond was a bit worried over Hope’s plan to use the gangs of New York to do it) when the door was opened so furiously that it caused a loud banging sound. 

“So what's the next city you want me to smite?!” Shay shouted angrily as he briskly walked towards Achilles. He stood right in front of Achilles’ face as he angrily said, “What happened in Haiti happened in Portugal.” 

Hope immediately placed herself between Shay and Achilles and pushed Shay away.

“A great earthquake.” Shay tried to walk towards Achilles once more as he pointed an accusing finger at the old mentor but Hope pushed him away before he could get close, “Thousands dead, thanks to your damned Manuscript!”

“Shay, calm down,” Anne suggested calmly and took a step towards the angry man but Jenny grabbed her hand and forced Anne to stand behind her as she stared at Shay warily.

“This cannot be.” Achilles mumbled with clear disbelief on his face.

“Shay, a person cannot start an earthquake.” Hope tried to reason which made Desmond blink out of his surprise.

Oh fuck. Seriously?!

“A person meddling with these Precursor machines could.” Shay retorted, echoing Desmond’s exact thoughts, as he reminded his fellow Assassin, “You saw the Box, Hope. The Temple was filled to bursting with that kind of power.” 

Doubt crept on Hope’s face and she glanced at her mentor while Shay shouted in both anger and horror, “You made me SLAUGHTER INNOCENTS!”

Hope pushed Shay once more when he tried to walk toward her mentor once more, “How dare you!” 

“You defend him?” Shay asked Hope, face filled with anger and pain. He pointed at Achilles once more and accused, “Achilles sent me in there like Mackandal sent his man in Haiti. He knew.”

“Jaysus.” Edward muttered before turning to Achilles, “Achilles-”

The door burst opened once more, cutting Edward off. Liam entered the room and saw Shay trying to push Hope aside to get to Achilles, “What the hell's going on?”

Liam grabbed Shay by the shoulder and pushed him away from Hope as he ordered his childhood friend, “Stop this!”

“The operation was delicate,” Achilles started, “Perhaps you-”

“You are shifting the earth itself.” Shay cut him off and accused him, “Who are you to decide what city falls next?”

“How dare you-”

“Wait, Shay-”

“Get him-”

“EVERYONE, JUST CALM THE FUCK DOWN!” Desmond shouted loudly, causing everyone to turn to face him. 

“Uh…” Edward looked around before suggesting calmly, “You should calm down too, lad.”

“Ssshhh!” Desmond hushed and grabbed Shay’s arm before turning to Achilles and his pupils, “All of you, stay here. Achilles, tell Edward everything you know about this.”

Achilles looked ready to argue and that only made Desmond order him further, “Don’t. Whatever happened in Portugal, we need to get to the bottom of it. Tell Edward everything, I will handle Shay.”

“Jenny.” Desmond turned towards Jenny and ordered, “Make sure no one leaves this room. If anyone does leave, hunt them down and tie them outside in this damn freezing weather.”

“Got it.” Jenny nodded and turned to glare at Achilles and his pupils as if just daring them to try.

“Shay, come on,” Desmond whispered but kept a tight grip on Shay’s shoulder as he pulled the younger man out of the room.   

Shay wasn’t sure what to expect. The grip on his arm was tight but he could shake it off if he wanted to. But he… just didn’t have the strength to. Not anymore…

The anger that had been fueling him had left him the moment he heard Desmond’s voice and all he could do was follow the older man as they walked downstairs.

He didn’t expect Desmond to take him into the kitchens, push him to sit on one of the chairs, and drop a scratchy but warm blanket on his shoulders. He watched as one of the most (if not the most) famous Assassins of their time heated up what smelled like soup quietly. 

Shay could only accept the cup Desmond had filled with warm soup and stare at it in confusion.

“Drink,” Desmond ordered gently as he took the seat right next to Shay.

The soft way he said that word only further confused Shay and he took a sip.

It was a bit bland but he could taste the gamey taste of whatever meat they had added to the soup. 

Desmond rubbed his back as he ordered once more, “Drink, Shay.”

Not understanding what was happening or why he was being ordered to drink some soup that wasn’t even that good, Shay did as he was ordered to, sipping the soup. 

By his fifth sip, his hands began to tremble.

By his tenth, his visions had become blurry.

By his twelfth, he was sobbing.

Desmond took the cup away from him and let the young man cry on his shoulder, rubbing his back as he whispered softly, “You’re okay, you’re okay. Just let it out. We’ll figure things out later. Just let it out, Shay.”

It took the rest of the day and night for Shay to coherently explain what had happened in Portugal. He seemed surprised and relieved when Desmond told him that he believed him.

It wasn’t that far-fetched for Desmond.

Either the Piece of Eden Shay interacted with had been faulty or these Pieces of Eden were created to keep certain lands stable and the earthquake was triggered by Shay removing it. 

Regardless of the reason why Haiti and Portugal suffered an earthquake after these Pieces of Eden had been disturbed, they needed to secure the sites noted in the manuscript and keep them from anyone who might be willing to kill innocent people for the chance to get a Piece of Eden. 

When Desmond and Shay returned to the room where Achilles and the others were staying, Shay kept quiet and let Desmond explain his side of the story. He stood at Desmond’s left, a bit behind him, and kept his eyes trained on Desmond’s face, not paying attention to the worried glances Liam and Hope were giving him.

Edward had vouched for Achilles, saying that no one knew what the Piece of Eden could do. There was no mention of its function in the manuscript which Edward believed was true because he had been the one who found these pages in the first place but it had been Achilles who had ordered Shay and Hope to check if the Precursor Box could help translate the manuscript. He knew that Shay had been sent to recover a Piece of Eden but Edward stressed that no one in the Brotherhood knew what it was capable of.

Desmond believed him. The only other persons who had known what it was able to do were the Assassins who died in Haiti.

Still, it was dangerous to keep both the manuscript and the Precursor box that can translate it in the same place, even if it was with the Assassins. 

A part of him had been reluctant, especially since he now had the three Apples he needed, but he knew that this kind of Piece of Eden needed to be secured as soon as possible and, honestly, he didn’t trust the Colonial Brotherhood enough at the moment to do it correctly. 

Desmond didn’t bother to ask permission when he took the manuscript and the Precursor box as he announced, “I’ll deal with this.”

“This is our responsibility.” Achilles stated as he glared at Desmond.

Desmond stared at him for a moment before replying coldly, “Your responsibility is to strengthen the Colonial Brotherhood, Achilles. Your responsibility is to guide and nurture the Assassins who look up to you as their mentor.”

His words were laced with the anger of Ezio and Altaïr as he growled, “You dismissed Shay’s words without taking even a single second to listen to them. You heard his words but did not listen. Your eyes were on Shay but you did not look at him.”

Desmond placed the precursor box and the manuscript in a small bag he found in his room and suggested, “Think about what you’ve done today, Achilles, and ask yourself if that is the kind of mentor you want to be.”

Haytham returned to the Davenport Homestead the next day, just as Shay and Desmond were making final preparations in the Morrigan. He and Jenny came aboard the Morrigan and Haytham looked at the entire ship with distaste as he commented, “The Jackdaw would be a better fit for this, Desmond. I am sure that Novice Cormac wouldn’t mind.”

Shay narrowed his eyes at Haytham but remained silent while Jenny sighed and shook her head.

“Nope.” Desmond popped the ‘p’ and walked towards Haytham. He looked at him with a small smile on his face that always appeared whenever he was reminded of how different Haytham looked in his Assassin’s robes. The biggest change had been how he didn’t have a hat as it would only get in the way if he needed to pull his hood up quickly. Just because he could, Desmond grinned as he pulled Haytham’s hood up, making the already thirty years old man grumble half-heartedly. However, Haytham did not pull his hood down which only made Desmond’s grin grow.

“I’m leaving the Jackdaw to you, Haytham,” Desmond announced. Seeing the wide eyes and open mouth all three of them gave him, he clarified, “For now. With the way the war is going, it would be better if you guys have the Jackdaw… just in case.”

A part of him will always long for the Aquila but the Jackdaw… The Jackdaw was his home, is still his home. Honestly, he was looking forward to teaching Ratonhnhaké:ton how to sail in the Jackdaw, and, when the time came, he wanted Ratonhnhaké:ton to sail in the Jackdaw instead of the Aquila. 

Desmond knew it was him being a sentimental idiot but he just couldn’t help himself.

“Of course…” Haytham replied with a raised eyebrow. He placed both of his hands behind him as he nodded, “I will make sure to take care of her in your absence then.”

“I know you will,” Desmond said with a smile. He pressed his forehead against Haytham’s and softly asked, “You help our parents keep Achilles and his students in line, okay? And make sure our parents don’t do anything stupid.”

“Of course.” Haytham placed a hand over Desmond’s shoulder and whispered, “Safety and peace, mentor.”

“Upon you as well, little eagle,” Desmond whispered back before kissing Haytham’s forehead. Haytham took a step back and watched as Desmond pressed his forehead against his sister’s.

“Don’t do anything too stupid,” Jenny whispered and Desmond chuckled.

“I’ll try,” Desmond answered honestly which only made Jenny sigh. 

They leaned away from one another and Jenny kissed Desmond’s cheek before whispering dryly, “Safety and peace, my dumb brother.”

“Upon you as well, Lady Scott.” Desmond cheekily replied before loudly whispering, “Keep an eye on Haytham.” 

Jenny snorted and rolled her eyes, “Of course.” 

“Hey!” Haytham snapped at them before glaring at Shay, “Oh, wipe that look off your face, novice. You look like a deranged mutt.”

“I’ll miss you too, Brother Kenway.” Shay dryly said with a roll of his eyes.

“I dare hope but I will not hold my breath that you do not get in Desmond’s way, Novice Cormac.” Haytham retorted with the same dry tone.

“And that’s our cue to leave!” Desmond announced before the two could continue their banter.  

On their way to Italy, Desmond read the entire manuscript. Shay had been surprised to learn that Desmond could read it with no problem but he gave his solemn promise not to tell anyone about it. Seeing the seriousness in his eyes as he held Desmond’s hands when he made his promise, Desmond believed him.

To be completely honest, Desmond didn’t know why he could read the manuscript. He’ll chalk it up to more Isu bullshit though because that was, in the end, what it was. The manuscript was written by the Isu and they were definitely missing some of the pages. The reports they did have were about different Pieces of Edens and most of them Desmond surmised were the same type of what Shay had encountered in Portugal. 

From what he could read, they were created by an Isu called Atlas (who, for some reason, always signed his notes with ‘Atlas, not the idiot son of Poseidon’, Isus were weird…) and were created to stabilize the first few land formations that Altas had developed. His first land formations were deemed failures as they couldn’t hold themselves on their own and that was the reason why Atlas created these Pieces of Eden. 

Desmond marked each location that the manuscript had noted, his heart skipping when he realized one of them had been placed in the center of Venice itself. There were even ones located in America itself and some in Asia.

They would need to check every single location and warn the Assassins stationed there.

But first…

Desmond was greeted with the same respect as before when he and Shay disembarked in Rome. Shay had been confused about why they kept calling him ‘Signore Auditore’ and Desmond just waved it off, telling him that it was the name of his ancestor.

That only made Shay even more curious because every Assassin knew about Ezio Auditore.

Thankfully, he didn’t press and only followed Desmond as he led him to the vault underneath Santa Maria Aracoelli.    

Desmond left the Precursor box inside the vault and sighed in relief when Juno didn’t make an appearance. 

After Rome, they went straight to Venice to check the location noted in the manuscript. It was, as Desmond feared, the same one as Shay had seen in Portugal.

Shay had been apprehensive when Desmond walked close to it and sighed in relief when he saw that the older man had no plan to touch it. 

Desmond wasn’t sure what to think of the Piece of Eden. It was meant to stabilize the land above them by continuously powering the entire room it was sealed in. It was a battery of some kind, similar to the ones they had to find for the Grand Temple back in the 21st century. It was a self-sufficient piece, continuously generating the power needed to keep the land afloat and using just a bit of that energy to produce more energy, creating a sustainable loop. 

It was because of that loop that removing it caused the collapse. 

They couldn’t risk anyone even touching it.

It was nice that his reputation could be used to his advantage. The Assassins he spoke to had listened to him when he explained what the Piece of Apple was doing and what would happen if it was taken out. They had promised to keep an eye on it and to make sure all the other Assassins knew about it. Just to be sure, Desmond ordered that a warning would be placed near the Piece of Eden itself, written in as many languages as they could possibly think of.

Desmond spent the rest of 1755 and the majority of 1756, sailing across the world with Shay Patrick Cormac as the Morrigan's quartermaster (Shay offered the helm to Desmond but he had refused, the Morrigan was Shay’s ship, not his) to check each location noted in the manuscript and making sure the Assassins near that location knew about it and what it could do.

During their travels, they docked in Great Inagua which had been deserted by the Assassins for years now. Desmond buried the manuscript in front of one of the many trees by the cove, leaving no markers or notes. The tree itself held no special meaning to Desmond, it was simply one of the many trees in Great Inagua.

And Desmond hoped that would be enough to keep it hidden from everybody’s view.

It was ironic that he returned to the Grand Temple on December 21 in the year 1756. They were on their way back to the homestead but the Grand Temple was on the way so Desmond decided to just get it over with. Shay followed him into the temple, looking warier than in awe at the strange structure. 

Desmond wasn’t surprised. After the experience he had with a piece of Isu tech, Desmond would be more surprised if Shay hadn’t developed even just a slight aversion to it. Still, he followed Desmond as he reached the pedestal where the Global Aurora Borealis device could be activated, his pouches began to shine just as Juno appeared next to him, making Shay take a step back and unsheathe both his sword and dagger.

“Desmond.” Juno paced around the pedestal as she said, “Whatever he told you, you must not trust him. He does not care about you or this timeline of yours.”

He? 

Did that mean Desmond hadn’t been talking to an AI? 

Aw, man.

It was another Isu, wasn’t it?

Of course, it was.

The Eye creaked and became enveloped in golden light. A second later, a golden male form appeared next to Desmond.

“She is not wrong.” The golden form said in a monotone voice that was clearly Desmond’s. It certainly confused Shay who stared at the golden form with an open mouth, “I hold only a passing interest in your branch. This branch does not have the future I am looking for.”

The golden form stepped in front of Desmond as he continued, “But I did not lie. I have found a calculation that can grant your desire.”

“His desire?” Juno’s laughter was full of malice and anger as she mockingly asked Desmond, “Is that what he told you? That he’s here to help? He’s doing this to satisfy his own desires. He only wants to see his pathetic little dreams-”

The pouch containing Altaïr’s Apple glowed brighter for a moment before letting out a pulse of golden light that enveloped the entire temple and Juno gasped silently, touching her throat before glaring at Desmond. Or, to be more exact, she was glaring at the pouch that just, apparently, took her voice.

“Thank you.” The golden form said as he nodded at the pouch before turning to look at Desmond once more, “Place the Apple around the pedestal in a triangle formation.”

Desmond warily did as he instructed, dryly asking, “Do they need to face each other in a specific angle or order?”

“No. Even just a loose triangle will work.” The figure replied and Desmond wasn’t sure if he was ignoring Desmond’s sarcasm or if he didn’t recognize it at all. 

The moment Desmond placed the third Apple on the floor, all three Apples began to glow. Desmond took a few steps back and watched as each Apple started to float. Juno's entire body began to glow a golden hue and her face contorted into a face filled with pain as she began to float in midair, getting pulled into the center of the triangle, right on top of the pedestal. All the Apples shot a beam of light towards Juno and her face contorted into a silent scream as her entire body began to glow in searing hot light. 

Desmond’s eyes widened as a golden form appeared behind each Apple, seemingly holding the Apple in their hands. They were forms made of golden light but Desmond knew… 

He knew them…

He could recognize their clothes even when they were just made up of pure light.

“It is done.” The figure with Desmond’s voice informed him, “The Apples will keep Juno encased here and, on December 21, 2012, they will automatically trigger the device using Juno.”

“Will… will Juno get out when it’s triggered?” Desmond asked worriedly.

“No.” The golden figure replied, “Using this device will burn Juno’s data before she could leave this place. This will be her prison awaiting her execution.”

“Oh.” Desmond blinked before commenting, “I should feel bad but I don’t.”

The figure stared at him for a moment before agreeing, “It is Juno.”

Desmond shrugged, “True.”

He turned to look at the three forms holding the Apples and asked, “And they’re…”

“They’re not… It’s not them.” The figure stated with a softer kinder tone, “The Apples only took the forms of the three people you trust the most, the people you believed without a shadow of a doubt that would make sure that this works. They are only a virtual representation the Apples had taken to inform you that this has worked.”

“Oh.” Desmond wasn’t sure if that information should make him happy or not.

“It is time for you to return home, Desmond. To the family you have made in this branch.” The golden figure said as his form slowly dispersed into golden dust, “He’s waiting for you.”

Desmond blinked at his last words, “Wait. Wh-”

His words died in his throat as the golden figure turned into dust. He watched the three Apples for a few moments as Shay approached him and asked warily, “Who… who are they?”

Desmond’s lips curved into a small sad smile as he replied, “The three most important people in my previous life.”

When they finally reached the homestead, Desmond was immediately ushered inside by a strangely less than immaculately dressed Haytham who pushed him into the living room where the rest of their family were waiting.

Desmond’s breath hitched as he saw the little bundle Edward had in his arms. Edward grinned as he saw Desmond approach, “Look, lad, your godfather is finally here.”

Desmond could only stare in silence as Edward transferred the baby in his arms as Haytham introduced, “Say hello to your godson, little Edward Desmond Kenway.”

“His name is Ratonhnhaké:ton.” Kaniehtí:io corrected without any hint of annoyance as she remained sitting on a comfortable armchair, staring at Desmond’s gobsmacked face as the man gently cradled her son in his arms.  

Haytham rolled his eyes as he replied, “Yes, yes. Our son has two names. Edward Desmond Kenway and-”

“Ratonhnhaké:ton,” Desmond whispered as he smiled at the baby softly. With one hand holding the baby gently but firmly, Desmond took out the last wood carving he had and placed it in the baby’s hand. The baby gripped it tightly and Desmond’s lips curved into a soft grin, “It’s… It’s good to finally see you, Ratonhnhaké:ton.”

Even with his vision becoming blurry with tears, Desmond’s grin still grew bigger as he whispered, “I’m gonna spoil you sooooo much.”