Hey guys!

Chapter 2 already? Well, it's much easier when you have the outline all typed up for you. I'm trying to cut down what I say in the opening author's note, so go ahead and enjoy.

Chapter 2

Ezio immediately let go of her. Alessa kept her back turned, her shoulders hunched over. She knew that if this turned sour, it could end in her death.

His hand clamped down on her arm, hard enough to bruise; she let out a small yelp of surprise and pain, but Ezio did not slacken his grip. He led her to the back of the hideout and pushed her into a smaller room. She didn't have time to take stock of her surroundings before the door slammed and locked behind her.

"For you sake, Donna, stay where I leave you this time," his voice was missing all the warmth that it had had a moment ago. Alessa smashed her fists into the door and screamed his name to no avail. She leaned against the wall and slowly slid down, face in her hands.

Alessa stayed obediently crumpled against the door. The blood smatters on her dress had dried brown and stiff; whenever she moved, they crackled and chafed uncomfortably against her skin. The heated conversation between Ezio and the other man - Niccolò Machiavelli, she had learned - drifted down to her. From the parts she's been able to understand, they were debating her future.

Ezio seemed in favour of keeping her alive, to her surprise. He kept on saying that they needed help and that she already had apt ability with a sword. Niccolò wanted her dead, or at least removed from the picture; she was too much of a liability and they knew nothing about her. Their voices were getting steadily louder and Alessa cringed as a door slammed shut. Moments later, she heard the door being unlocked and Ezio walked in. Sitting with a sigh, he pulled his hood down. He seemed to not remember her presence so the moment was stolen to study him.

Brown hair fell in his face, just above dark eyebrows that arched perfectly over warm and inviting eyes. His nose was distinctly Roman with a downward hook, but not in an unattractive way. A strong jaw line, covered by a cleanly cut beard, was broken up by a scar across his lips; lips which previously had an omnipresent smile, but were now straight in thought.

He glanced up to catch her stare. She immediately looked down, suddenly interested in the hem of her dress as a blush coloured her cheeks pink. The slightest ruffling of cloth and he was beside her with a hand extended.

"Come, Donna," he flashed an apologetic smile. Allowing herself to be helped up, Alessa brushed off some dirt from her dress and followed Ezio out the door. He crossed the street and planted her on a heavily armoured horse. She pinned the assassino with a raised eyebrow.

"Where, exactly, are we going?"

"I'm taking you home, Alessa." The words slapped her across the face.

"Is there no way I can convince you otherwise?" she pleaded with him. Ezio set the pace to a brisk trot.

"Machiavelli will not have you in the sanctuary, and I will not kill you. Mi dispiace, Alessa," his tone was sincere but it did nothing to mollify her. They rode in silence for a while. Ezio would not meet her eyes. She struggled to keep tears from falling. All her hopes had been crushed in the blink of an eye. Finally, Ezio broke the silence.

"What brought such a young woman so far from her home?" A dark look passed over Alessa's face.

"My husband is a rich man; rich and very much full of himself. His name is Juan Borgia the Elder, Cesare's banker," she scoffed. Had she been more observant, she'd have noticed Ezio stiffen. As it was, she continued out of self-pity.

"He drinks, all the time. He throws parties and invites the whores back to the house; he orders me to wait on the Dio cane abbandonato! When he wakes up in the morning to find his money stolen and not a drop of wine in his cup, he beats me. A woman such as I finds reasons to leave the house frequently, assassino." She said it like an insult. Ezio had been sitting silently. When she finished, he grabbed her from her horse. The mare galloped away when Ezio gave her a smack on the rump.

"What are you doing? Put me down right-" Alessa was cut off by a gentle finger to her lips. Ezio spurred his horse forward into the open countryside surrounding Roma.

The Colosseo grew larger until they stopped beside the massive structure. Ezio leapt off his mount, grabbed a beam and pulled Alessa up after him.

"Hey, what are you doing?" He continued without waiting for her and yanked her up again. His breathing was even, despite the extra work.

"Would you rather climb this yourself?"

"I would rather you put me the hell down!" Ezio ignored her, continuing up the side of the building.

The assassino finally pulled her up to the outer rim of the giant structure. He sat on the edge and spread out with his arms behind his head to act as a pillow. Sweat beaded his brow from the climb, but he showed no other signs of strain. Alessa sat beside him as the cool breeze blew her hair away from her face.

"I come up here to think – away from the crowds of Roma and the eyes of the guards," Ezio did not look at her as he talked; his eyes were focused on the stars above him.

"And what are you thinking about?" Ezio moved his gaze to her, his brow crinkled.

"What are you afraid of?"

The question was one Alessa had asked herself before. She had no fear of the guards, nor her husband's beating. Pain and death were not things that kept her awake at night.

"Being stuck with my life until I wither away; I fear having a child and losing my independence to the babe of a man whom I bear no love," Alessa bit the corner of her lip in thought. "I fear losing a chance to escape my future."

A sympathetic look passed over Ezio's face. He took Alessa's hand and led her onto a wooden plank. He nudged her out, holding her arms reassuringly. He was pressed much too close to her. She could feel his breath on her ear when he whispered,

"Are you afraid now?" She shook her head, though her quaking legs said otherwise.

"It's all right to be scared, Alessa. I used to be as well," She turned to look at him and blinked in surprise when she found his handsome face a hair's breadth from her own. A seductive smile pulled at his lips and the lusty edge of desire was in his eyes. Alessa made no attempt to fight when the assassino leaned forward to find her lips with his.

The kiss was gentle and sweet, unlike any she had had before. Ezio's body pressed against her comfortingly. When their lips parted, Alessa kept her eyes closed.

"I'm going to kill your husband," Ezio's face was still close to hers – which was why it was smacked when Alessa reared back in surprise. He let go and grabbed at his nose with a curse. Alessa stumbled away from him – and right off the edge.

She screamed as she fell, up until she heard a soft whump. Her eyes had been squeezed closed, but she opened them now. It took her a moment to figure out that she was in a wagon of hay. She vaulted out on shaky legs and threw up into a nearby bush.

Ezio landed in the hay pile a moment later. When he jumped out, Alessa immediately noticed the blood streaming from his nose. She slapped her hands to her mouth and squeaked out a,

"Mi dispiace!" Ezio gave a shrug and a laugh.

"Come along, donna, there is work to be done before the night is over."

Juan came out from the large house with a smile on his face.

"Darling! You've come home, you know how I worry about you!" the threat underlying his words was blatantly obvious. "What's happened to you? You- you're filthy! But grazie a Dio you're alright! Do I have this," he gestured wildly at Ezio "gentiluomo to thank for that?" Alessa nodded quietly, keeping her head down as she walked from Ezio's side to her husband's. "Good, very good! Thank you signore, for bringing home mio amore."

"Prego. A pleasure, signori," Ezio held out his hand to Juan. As the Banker grabbed it and gave it a vigorous shake, the blade on the wrist of the assassino slid forward with a shink. It barely pricked Juan, only just broke the skin – it was the poison in the tip that killed him. The fat man began to froth at the mouth in moments. He was soon implacable and completely mad. He stood on the spot, swaying and flailing his arms around while making horrible gurgling noises. In less than a minute, Alessa's husband was dead.

So if you read Teach Me, you'll have noticed by now that I've changed some things around. By 'things' I mean plot points and events have been changed. This is going to be the regular as I feel I added in a lot of things to Teach Me just because I could. My new motto that I'm trying to write by is that everything must mean something.

We'll see how it works.

I've been thinking about it and my goal is to get a new chapter out every few days to start with, at least until I catch up to my rough draft of Teach Me. I don't hold myself to this as my writing is like a mood and I can't force. Also life likes to get in the way.

I'm not perfect, so if you see an error (spelling, grammar, tense, etc.) please let me know in the comments or a PM so I may fix it.