Dear malik,

Could you name the place where you lived your happiest moment? Like maybe the castel of masyaf? The city ? And why?

Ps: i live by the meditteranean sea and i like de dive i don't understand why your friend altair hates swimming :-)

Safety and peace . Ihab

Safety and peace, Ihab.

There are two moments from my past I actually consider to be my happiest memories.

One of them is actually one of my earliest memories. I was about five years old and it was a couple of weeks after Kadar's birth at the most. My parents had sat me down in our living room, my mother showing me how to properly hold a baby before handing my little brother over to me. She hovered nearby, of course, making sure that I didn't drop him. Still, I held him as carefully and delicately as possible. He was drowsy, so he was just looking up at me blearily and kept yawning. Newborns have a very distinct smell and I can remember the scent perfectly.

I introduced myself to Kadar. He, of course, didn't really do much save for look up at me for a little while longer before he fell asleep in my arms.

My other happiest memory was when I became a full member of the order. I had returned from my first official assassination mission, which I do believe I have discussed previously. Upon returning home, I informed Al Mualim of my success; he told me that, because I had tracked the target, gathered my own information about him without relying on the knowledge of the bureau leader, and managed to kill my target, I was ready to become an actual assassin.

That evening, Al Mualim gathered the order; such ceremonies were not mandatory to attend, but it was a sign of respect. When I stood with him, I could see faces of people I knew; Kadar was there, of course. So was Altaïr (who had already been raised above the rank of Novice) and Rauf and many others. There were also plenty of people I didn't know. I was overwhelmed with emotion, but I refused to let it show on my face.

I recited the Creed and Al Mualim presented me with my white robes. I then climbed up the tower and performed a leap of faith in front of everyone.

These are both what I consider to be my happiest memories.

Also, in regards to Altaïr's strange aversion to swimming… I'm fairly certain that he knows how to swim, he just refuses. Every now and then on particularly hot days, I will go swimming and invite him to join me. He refuses every time. I'm not sure, but I suspect that it has something to do with a bad incident when we were Novices, when he almost drowned when we were in Acre… Oh well.

His children will join me when I go swimming, however. Sometimes Maria will too. It makes me feel oddly wistful when I see Darim and Sef splashing and wrestling one another.

Yours,

Malik Al-Sayf

Every time I think that this is dead for good, someone asks another question out of the blue. It's surprising, but it makes me happy. :)

Also, I'm considering moving the date for this to either slightly before or after Altaïr leaves for Mongolia with Maria and Darim; that would open it up for more opportunities to ask about things further down the line. What do you guys think?

I'm also thinking about making one of these for AO3. Does anyone have an opinion one way or another?